Why You Should Know Your Personal Values
Values, personal values, and core values all refer to the same thing. They are desirable qualities, standards, or principles. Values are a person's driving force and influence their actions and reactions.
Saying, "He's a courageous man" or "She's a generous woman" reflects a person's deepest priorities in life. A brave man speaks out, even when it's dangerous to do so. A generous woman selflessly gives money or her time to help others.
Besides bravery and generosity, other common values are acceptance, beauty, commitment, excellence, family, fun, harmony, health, leadership, love, prestige, respect, service, spirituality, and wealth.
Everyone has personal values, even if they don't realize it.
Where Your Values Come From
You inherit some of your values. You learn some values from your parents, teachers, and other influential people in your life. You also take on values from reading and watching TV and from school-of-hard-knocks experience.
Your values also reflect the values of the place where you live - your town or city, region, and country. And they reflect your generation, i.e., the group of people born around the same year as you.
Values last a lifetime. While they may undergo some change through the years, they're fairly stable.
Benefits of Knowing Your Values
Why is it important to know what your values are? Simple. So you can make better choices.
People who don't know their values tend to wander around, bouncing from one thing to another, trying to find themselves. They're like puppets, pulled along without any clear direction.
Knowing your values helps you:
- Follow a clear set of rules and guidelines for your actions. You’re less likely to take the easy way out or chase after short-term gains at the expense of your long-term goals.
- Make good decisions. You quickly know what are good choices for you and what are not.
- Find compatible people, places, and things that support your way of living.
- Live with integrity. Integrity here doesn't mean honesty or honor. Integrity means wholeness or completeness - being a whole person. Nothing left out. Being true to yourself
Learning to identify and live from your values is a key personal development strategy.
It’s also one of the best ways of managing stress. The more you live true to your values, the more fulfilled and peaceful you are.
You can find two powerful value exercises in The 25 Best Time Management Tools & Techniques, an easy-to-read guide to the best advice on time management. Order now or click here for more information.
|
||
