Kākou is the Hawaiian value of inclusiveness. It means “all of us” and “we are in this together.” Kākou is very unifying when applied to language, and all are taught to learn, speak, and practice “the language of we.” Coupled with the value of Lōkahi, Kākou promotes synergy as a habit of creation which seeks additional solutions and alternatives. There is a definite as-spoken-aloud-to-include connotation within the kaona of this value, thus we’ll often refer to Kākou as our value of communication.
From Managing with Aloha (Chapter 9 preamble):
Kākou
The value of inclusiveness
All of us. We are in this together
Learn to speak the language of we
Kākou. All of us together, inclusively.
Kākou is the language of the ‘Ohana, for it is the language of “we,” and we are in this together. Together we are stronger. We are better.
Managers depend on other people, both peers and employees, to gain their results most effectively. As Kākou coaches inclusiveness, there is a definite as-spoken-aloud-to-include connotation within the kaona of this value; it becomes our value of good communication.
We. All of us in the ‘Ohana. We are in this Kākou, together. We have an ‘Ohana in business, wherein the whole is greater than the sum of its parts.
No burden, no task, no goal, no mission will be too great when we are Kākou.
Continue your learning!
For a brief, single-page listing of all 19 Hawaiian Values of ALOHA within the Managing with Aloha philosophy, see The 19 Values of Aloha.
For more about values and why we choose them, see Let’s Define Values.
This is the Site Index of articles which include KĀKOU, with comment boxes for questions, stories, and our continued learning from each other: When people speak, they give voice to values, and their personal expression of them. In Hawai‘i, we call this expression their mana‘o.
Here is an example of our Managing with Aloha value-mapping: Read about KĀKOU as the value guidance of a Conversational Workplace, in the context of The Daily Five Minutes practice: D5M: The Daily Five Minutes (Link to RosaSay.com).
Buy the book!
Managing with Aloha is a book designed to be written in, and used as both learning resource and personal workbook. Managing with Aloha is our philosophy bible, and this site can be thought of as the sequel to the book, where you are now the featured star.