Making Values Real

A Practical Guide to Living, Leading and Building Relationships Through Values

In a world of competing priorities and ethical dilemmas, how can we truly live by our values? Making Values Real is a transformative guide that bridges the gap between aspiration and action, offering practical insights into integrating values into our personal lives, relationships, workplaces, and society.

Like yeast in baking, values have the power to shape, sustain, and elevate our experiences-if we actively work them into our daily decisions and interactions. Drawing from years of experience in values-based teaching and leadership, this book provides the tools to navigate values conflicts, foster moral agency, and create a culture of integrity. Whether you're a leader, professional, educator, or simply someone seeking to align your life with your values, this book empowers you to make values a living force in every aspect of your world.

Are you ready to be the baker who brings real, lasting change?

Arnold Smit is an extraordinary associate professor at Stellenbosch Business School and an associate professor in Management and Leadership at the IEDC-Bled School of Management in Slovenia. He is also the owner of WisePraxis (Pty) Ltd. His main interest is in the intersection of leadership, values and ethics, sustainability, and governance in organisations. Apart from teaching on these subjects in academic and corporate education programmes, he also facilitates organisational values workshops and integration processes. His conference presentations and publications include works on responsible leadership, values integration, corporate sustainability and responsibility, and multi-stakeholder process facilitation. In addition to other qualifications, he holds an Honours in Philosophy, a MPhil in Applied Ethics, and a Doctorate in Theology from Stellenbosch University. His career experience includes parish ministry, human resources management, management consulting, and management education. He also serves as a non-executive director of The Ethics Institute, a trustee of SEED Educational Trust, a member of the Globethics Pool of Experts, and as a fellow of the School for Social Innovation at Hugenote College.