One of the coaches I admire most is Steve Kerr, basketball coach for the Golden State Warriors. I’m enjoying reading a biography about him.

As a team leader, he promotes four key values: joy, compassion, mindfulness, and competition.

• Joy. Teams should have fun. The time spent together should have meaning. Progress inspires joy. Achievement inspires joy. Friendship inspires joy. Kerr pays attention to the level of “joy” the teammates are experiencing.
• Compassion. Compassion brings connection. Compassion seeks to understand. Compassion reacts appropriately to teammates in their best interest. Kerr pays attention to compassion. When he sees selfishness, he confronts it. Those who don’t have a heart for the team get replaced.
• Mindfulness. I refer to mindfulness as intention. Mindful people have a plan. Mindful people have purpose. Mindful people pursue their goals. Consistently. Constantly. The team gets better when every person seeks to improve things.
• Competition. Kerr was a professional athlete and now coaches them. Competition brings a priority and edge to daily activity. To win at a high level, the opportunity to compete must stir you. Kerr feels a competitive nature is essential to success in his enterprise. He creates competitive environments throughout the organization.

As a leader, it’s essential to define the values on which you stand. Those values help create the desired culture. Does your team know your values?