How do personal core values shape your life?
We struggle to make decisions, engage socially and find the right direction in life. Even how we act in our daily routine sometimes becomes challenging to understand. This is where our core values come into the picture. They give meaning to our behavior, thought processes, and overall personality!
What are personal core values?
In its simplest form, values are our principles. Something that we desire to have and guides our behavior, attitude, and beliefs.
We exhibit our values in every action, though we don’t realize it, and that’s the whole point of this article. Some are adventurous; some love water and beaches. Some are extroverts, while others shy away from interactions. Some people are easy-breezy, while others are ambitious. These are all values that guide our nature.
Examples of personal values
- Adventure
- Courage
- Balance
- Adaptability
- Money
- Happiness
- Health
- Caring
- Teamwork
- Honesty
- Integrity
- Innovation
- Creativity
- Peace
Why are they essential for your growth?
Personal core values shape our lives. When you know the rationale behind your actions and choices, life becomes so much clearer. This clarity helps you stay focused on the things that are right for you and your growth both in your personal and professional lives.
- Values help to find the purpose of our lives.
- Values-based living makes us more reliable as we know what we are doing. This sorts our life, and we can help others sort them when needed. It increases self-awareness.
- Values improve decision-making skills where there are no regrets or confusion.
- It helps us stay focused by clearing the clutter we don’t want.
- Values help us navigate difficult situations when we can’t figure out what’s good or bad for us.
- It makes us more confident. It also pushes us to have our own strong opinions on situations. We get to have a more profound sense of self.
- It helps you stay motivated in your career. You know in which direction you want to grow, and you can direct all efforts toward achieving your goals.
How to identify personal values?
To list your values, you really need to know yourself better. So be honest with yourself while answering all these questions. Take time and think deeply.
- What is important to you and why?
- Whom do you look up to when in a difficult situation, and why?
- What are you most proud of yourself and why?
- What do you not like about yourself and why?
- What all changes do you want in yourself?
- Are you in a comfortable space in life right now? If not, what is missing? If yes, what is there that makes you feel content?
I have created a straightforward, easy-to-follow tool to identify core values. It contains precise questions from different segments of our lives, such as personal relationships, passion, and expectations which get the correct answers from you. It is available in MS Excel and Google Sheets with powerful insights (graphs), review processes, and automation. It is worth trying!
Important:
- There is a list of values you can find easily in any article about personal core values, but I recommend not going blindly by such lists. You should use them for reference only and try to answer such questions to dig deeper and find your correct values.
- Don’t worry if you can’t get it right in one shot. It will take iterations and a lot of to-and-fros. When doing it for the first time, you might even need clarification about what you think are your values and what is coming out is different. Just relax; it happens. Take it slowly.
Summary:
The path to growth and success becomes more transparent, manageable, and achievable when we know our priorities.
When we live by our values, everything falls into place eventually in life. Our chances of career success become maximum when values align with our workplace values. It brings immense happiness and less stress at work.
Recommended Reading: Learn more about personal core values and how to discover and live by them.
