Our Mission, Vision and Values
Who are we? What is “Bedrock” and what do we do? How do we define ourselves and how does this relate to you? These are some of the toughest questions that a person, let alone a business, can ask themselves. We at Bedrock have been on that personal and collective journey of finding, discovering, and defining our mission, vision and values. We have struggled with the self-judgments and the “right” ways of doing things, and we wanted to share a few of the things we have learned as part of this process.
Mission
“We want to empower every person to be the best version of themselves and feel emboldened to make decisions that align with their personal ambitions, goals and values.”
At Bedrock we have found this statement to be particularly useful with the people we get the privilege of working with. We have experienced it ourselves. Sometimes, we can identify what matters to us and, maybe, even the path forward. But then we hit “the wall”. This isn’t a loving play to part of our process. This is the imaginary mountain that stands in the way of us and our destiny. It is all of the negative self-talk. It is all of the imaginary judgments. It is all of the “shoulds” and “coulds” and “gotta-be’s”. Our aim is a process of reduction, not addition.
Our personal journey at Bedrock has been a path of struggle, perseverance and doubt. We regularly question why we even bother with an idea so large it seems to swallow us whole. We doubt that this will ever be successful or useful to anyone. As a team we have each quit, on several occasions, and had to come back to the table to try again. We don’t want to pretend that this, or life, is easy. So we keep on this journey of empowering individuals to be the best version of themselves possible. Why? It matters. We keep looking for avenues to broaden the path to financial inclusion and stability. Why? It matters. We understand that no two people are the same, and we are working to build a path that meets all people exactly where they are on their own unique path.
*Note: These things don’t have to be perfect. We certainly aren’t and our process certainly isn’t. What we know today is that our old ideas, beliefs and systems need to be open for edit. In other words, be open to change.
Vision
“We create tools that give every individual the best shot at achieving their heart’s desire.”
We have found creating a vision one of the most challenging aspects of this process. Vision boards and manifestation and the like are the current fad, but what does it really mean? What does it mean to visualize a concept that does not exist, and has no reference point? This is a difficult task, especially for a couple of folks who don’t have that experience! And so we started with what we know: tools. We regularly create tools to meet our clients needs. We create space that meets our clients needs. We create processes that meet our clients needs. These creation steps are about that vision of building usefulness for people. And how do we measure usefulness? Are the people utilizing what we have built walking towards what they want, or are they looking at the tool and throwing it back in the pile with the rest of the tools they aren’t using? As we continue to evaluate and assess these questions, it returns to our most basic question: how can we be most useful?
Values
“Values are like fingerprints. Nobody’s are the same, but you leave ‘em all over everything you do.” - Elvis Presley
When it came to determining our values, we found that they could change on any given day. Not in a bad way; there are just so many! Distilling and determining where we stand on any given moment was a massive effort in and of itself. These are the 6 we came up with.
Empathy - This single word about sums up all that we stand for at Bedrock. We want to be in the boat with you, not on the shore yelling at you. We believe that this willingness to get in the muck with our clients is our unique value added to clients.
Courage - We do not use this word in the modern sense, but a more classical one. We aren’t talking about wrestling lions or venturing to the moon. We consider that bravery. For us, courage is asking for help, looking in the dark rooms of my life, or taking responsibility for choices made in the past. These things can feel like mountains, and we honor and cheer for those who climb them.
Authenticity - What you see is what you get with us. We operate from the perspective that motives aren’t always genuine, but principles don’t change. They apply no matter what the situation is. When we come from this principled place we are able to show up as whole people.
Perspective - The old adage of “its never as bad as I think it is, and its never as good as I think it is” applies to us. We offer that perspective to our clients that they just can’t see, since they are too close to their own problems. We take a step back, look at things from a different angle, and allow people to have the dignity of their own process in coming to terms with their life.
No Judgment - This, with empathy, is one of the special value “adds” that we bring to the table at Bedrock. This open space for clients allows them to bring all of themselves, including the muck, to the table. We believe that all are welcome, and that includes all of their shame and “problems”.
Persistence - Sometimes the battle is just showing up. We get it. That is life and we want to encourage each and every person to place one foot in front of the other, even when that action feels impossible. This is why we do this work together, as it allows for each person to struggle, overcome and grow in the process.
