Applying Value

In the last forty years of his life Moses found his true self. Each choice he made that was consistent with this true self brought greater strength, both to himself and his community. Moses was not free of doubt, he argued with God, he made mistakes, and sometimes he chose badly. But with each good choice he created greater possibilities.

In the process Moses became a great leader. He overcame powerful adversaries. He kept his people focused on long-term objectives. He introduced an effective strategic framework that continues to be used by individuals and enterprises centuries later. He created the future. Moses chose God’s will, and God blessed Moses.

But this did not guarantee success or result in an easy life. Moses faced all the typical challenges – and more – of any leader. There were several external threats. But it was internal dissatisfaction and dissension that preoccupied Moses. Even late in his life Moses continued to be troubled by his “stiff-necked,” “foolish and senseless,” “perverse and crooked” people. Moses tended not to focus on the external threats ahead but, rather, on the persistent internal threats that could undermine how the external threats would be engaged.

Some religious traditions teach the transcendence of trouble. They hold out the promise of an earthly paradise. This is not the story of Moses. The books of Moses are full of trouble. The life of Moses is an example of how one engages – not escapes – from trouble. Becoming his true self was the foundation for dealing with trouble, but was not sufficient. Moses had to develop and deploy sources of comparative advantage in dealing with both internal and external threats.

Knowing and being his true self – creating, empowering, loving, refraining, framing, and redeeming – gave Moses real power and significant potential. But how these strengths are used to engage trouble is where potential becomes reality. The most poignant failures – personal or commercial – are often the result of great strengths that are not applied, and sometimes not even recognized.

Innate value is not always recognized value. In the 1950s U.S. private railways might have recognized their great strength as trusted purveyors of personal transportation and begun to offer air travel as well as rail travel. They might have integrated air and rail travel for an even more convenient and cost-effective system than we have today. But the rail companies did not use this strength and were eliminated from the long-distance travel sector. With its origins in catalogue sales, Sears might have been an early adopter of e-commerce. Instead this is yet another commercial channel Sears has largely yielded to Walmart and others. How many times have you met individuals with impressive talents that are astoundingly underutilized? Examples of lost potential are pervasive.

Becoming your true self is innately valuable. A community or enterprise that crafts a true self has enormous potential. But to fulfill this potential the true self must be applied to solving problems, engaging troubles, and making the future.

Moses applied his true self through a variety of techniques. Many of these techniques reflect key components of differentiation identified by Michael Porter, a professor at the Harvard Business School. The behavior of Moses and Porter’s theory especially overlap in the following seven areas:

• Identifying what others value;
• Lowering buyers cost;
• Raising buyers performance;
• Linking your value with what others value;
• Using symbols and signals to give tangible meaning to intangible value;
• Changing the rules; and
• Ensuring sustainable unique value.

If you feel unappreciated by your spouse, if you are undervalued by your clients, if your customers do not see a difference between you and your competitors, it may be the result of not living consistently with your true self. It may be that you are undermining your core value with bad choices.

But we see in the life of Moses a profoundly true self who was still the target of complaints, abuse, and rejection. Moses responded with what Michael Porter calls a “differentiation strategy.” An effective differentiation strategy will result in recognition that you, or your enterprise, are unique at something that is valuable to the audience that matters to you: spouse, clients, children, customers, neighbors, voters, or whoever.

An effective differentiation strategy will not eliminate all troubles. But it will provide a means for engaging those troubles in a way that reinforces your true self and moves you – and potentially your community – forward in an Exodus-like journey to your ultimate goals.

As Moses demonstrates, this unique value must be consistent with your true self. This strategy is absolutely not about being all things to all people. But it does mean expressing your true self in ways that are sensitive to the needs, wants, and current conditions of others. It is a way of applying the profound potential of your true self in reaching out to, helping, serving, and leading others.