They help us decide and make choices that are in line with who we are and what we truly want, our happiness factor.
So, the more clear you are, the more connected you are to your own beliefs and priorities, and the better decision you make as a result.
We dive into this in much more details in my mentorship program, which is why I wanted to share my 7 steps to getting clear on your values.
You can do this exercise whenever you’re doubting yourself, not feeling good enough or that your making
What are values?
Values are your core beliefs; what you believe are important in the way you live and work, in other words, your dealbreakers.
They help us to decide what’s important. When things you do and the way you behave match your values, life is usually pretty good.
When they don’t match, that’s usually when inner conflict and struggle set in.
So you can see now, how values are foundational and key to reaching your highest potential.
How can values help?
I said before that values exist whether you know them or not, and here’s an example to show you why.
If let’s say you do not value competition and you work in a highly competitive sales environment, are you likely to be satisfied in your job?
In these situations, values can really help you to make important decisions like
- what job should I go for?
- should I compromise or be firm with my position?
- should I follow tradition, or create my own path?
As you grow personally and professionally, and as you attract more abundance into your life, your definition of success changes, and so will your values.
You can do this workbook at least once a year.
So now you know what values are and how they can help you, I want to help you define your values using these 7 steps.
7 Steps to getting clear on your values
Follow these steps to get super clear on your values and journal about your decision making experiences. I would love to hear about how this has helped you!
Step 1: Identify the times when you were most happy
Here is where you want to find examples from both your career and personal life of experiences and times when you were the most happiest.
Ask yourself these questions as a guide and to balance out your answers.
- What were you doing? How did you feel?
- Were you with other people? If so, who?
- What other factors or happenings in your life at the time contributed to your happiness?
Before you move on it’s important that you’ve written down everything you want, pen to paper, and you feel satisfied that this step is complete.
Step 2: Identify the times when you were most proud
This is similar to Step 1, only this time I want you to use examples from your career and personal life where you felt most proud.
Ask yourself these questions to help you through this step:
- Why were you proud? How did you feel?
- Did other people share your pride? Who?
- What other factors or happenings in your life contributed to your feelings of pride?
Before you move on it’s important that you’ve written down everything you want, pen to paper, and you feel satisfied that this step is complete.
Step 3: Identify the times when you were most fulfilled and satisfied
Using both work and personal examples again, here you’re going to ask yourself things like:
- What need or desire was fulfilled? What does fulfillment feel like for you?
- How and why did the experience give your life meaning?
- What other factors or happenings in your life contributed to your feelings of fulfillment?
Before you move on it’s important that you’ve written down everything you want, pen to paper, and you feel satisfied that this step is complete.
Step 4: Determine your TOP VALUES
Based on your experiences of happiness, pride and fulfillment that you’ve reflected on and written out, you’re going to now identify your top values.
It’s why I had to mention the importance of feeling satisfied after each of the first three steps.
In step 4, you’ll want to use the master list of values in the workbook and circle or write down every core value that resonates with you.
Don’t over think this – set yourself a 15 or 20 minute time limit, or just set aside a Saturday or Sunday morning to just be alone with your thoughts and this exercise.
Step 5: Make groups
Now that you have your values, group them in a way that makes sense to you, personally.
The workbook has an example, but ultimately you’re going to create a maximum of five groupings. If you have more than five groupings, drop those least important.
Step 6: Prioritize your values
This step is by far the most difficult, at least it was for me, because you’ll have to look deep inside yourself.
It’s also the most important step, because, when making a decision, you will likely be faced with a scenario where you have to choose between solutions that may satisfy different values.
This is being clear on your values really comes in handy.
Choose one word within each grouping that best represents the label for the entire group.
Don’t overthink the labels, do a quick glance and go with the first one that comes to mind. There are no right or wrong answers. You are defining the answer that is right for you.
Step 7: Reaffirm your values
Check your top-priority values, and make sure that they fit with your life and your vision for yourself.
- Do these values make you feel good about yourself?
- Looking at your top 3 values, do they make you feel proud?
- Would you be comfortable and proud to tell your values to people you respect and admire?
- Do these values represent things you would support, even if your choice isn’t the most popular?
When you consider your values in decision making, you can be sure to keep your sense of integrity because you’re going to behave and do things that are aligned to who and what is most important to you.
You’ll know what is right, and approach decisions with confidence and clarity, which is going to come in handy when you think about self discipline.
You’ll also know that what you’re doing is best for your current and future happiness and satisfaction, just by the way you FEEL.
Making value-based choices may not always be easy. However, making a choice that you know is right is a lot less difficult in the long run.
So just to recap:
- Identifying, understanding and prioritizing your values is a challenging and important exercise.
- Your personal values are a central part of who you are – and who you want to be.
- By becoming more aware of these important factors in your life, you can use them as a guide to make the best choice in any situation.
- Some of life’s decisions are really about determining what you value most. When many options seem reasonable, it’s helpful and comforting to rely on your values – and use them as a strong guiding force to point you in the right direction.
Take advantage of my FREE offer to download my 7 Steps to Clear Values Workbook below.
Get the Insider News & Blog updates right to your inbox.
[wd_hustle id=”email-subscribe” type=”embedded” css_class=””]
