I had a great time last night speaking to the Delta Sigma Pi business fraternity at Drake University. There were 20-30 students who came out and I had the chance to talk about how your beliefs affect your business.

The students were great. We talked about Crash Davis Belief Statements, and I encouraged the students to write their own. Several of them said that they would do so and send them to me. I figured that it’s a topic that most students don’t think about, and it’s probably not addressed in the college business curriculum. I see so many people from different companies in my work. Many people have compartmentalized their lives to the point that their beliefs and their vocation are in two completely different compartments.

I talked to the students about the fact that the choices you make, the way you behave, how you approach your job, how you treat your customers/co-workers/clients/employers, the quality with which you do your job – all come out of your core beliefs. People who find that their jobs are a vehicle to live out their beliefs find more satisfaction and do a better job. Those for whom a job is just the compartment of life that provides the money for the family/recreation/hobby/party compartments struggle to get through the day and don’t have much concern for the quality with which they do anything.

In a similar manner, it’s important for businesses to have a mission statement they actually believe. I encouraged students to ask job interviewers if they could communicate the corporate mission statement. What would say about a company if they could? What does it say when they can’t (I’ll bet 99.9% of employees don’t know their company’s mission statement)?

It’s important to define what you believe. It not only gives self-definition, but it begins the process of helping you make important life choices with wisdom.