know your 2 values

self is the prerequisite to self leadership.

this first step is to learn you. anything you do to know your SELF, to honour or explore or embrace who you are – is going to help you feel empowered in your life, in fact it IS the power in your life… self is the prerequisite.

know that you have a self, you ARE a self. a whole, unbroken, flawed, brilliant self. your inner self, true self, real self, soul self.

this is the YOU that is just for you.

after strengths, the next most important way to connect with your self is to connect with your values.


values are how you want to live – your fundamental ideals or guiding principles – it’s what’s most important to you.

before we explore further, let’s distinguish between strengths and values…

  • if you’ve found your core strengths, of course those things will also be top values, you value them because you recognise how good they are for you1! this is an opportunity to pick 2 more qualities that are important to you, along with the 3 strengths you’ve already honed in on.

  • strengths are often present through your lifetime and personal to you. but with values, we can sometimes take on the values of those close to us (eg parents or partners), plus as we go through the events of our life our values can change.

  • a value may not necessarily be something you are good at! values can be aspirational, they can be something you are trying to practice more in your life.

  • a strength is something you do or use. a value is how you live.

so what exactly is a value then? i find it can help to think of values as having monetary value, like currency… and certain values are worth more to you than others.

imagine attending any social event, for instance: a dinner, a conference, a meeting, a weekend away with friends. the presence of the things you specifically value adds value to that experience! it’s like those activities or qualities add pennies to your own personal soul bank. if those things you value aren’t really present, no big deal, it’s still a nice event, it just doesn’t really add any value to your soul bank. if you are in a situation where everything goes to shit but what you value is still present, you walk away glad to have that at least… like a minimum deposit. if you are in a situation where you compromise your values, you walk away with a depleted soul bank… you gave away your pennies.

if strengths strengthen you, values empower you… they fill up your soul bank and light you up from the inside. imagine you are a carebear (remember carebears?) - what you value is the symbol on your little bear chest. and when you practice that value or are in the presence of that value, you power up!

a value is not just something that guides how you live (your behaviours and beliefs) but something that powers how you live.

(like adding coinds to your soul bank or like powering up your carebear.)

try exploring:

  • highlight your top values from the list below. add to this list if you like. use a thesaurus if these aren’t quite the right words for what you value

  • ask: which of these are reflected in my daily life; which are the ones i most aspire to; which are my own values and which are ones i inherited; if i were building a perfect utopia (community, workplace, classroom whatever) which values would be the corner stones? which are the deal breakers i don’t want to live with out?

  • see where you can group or ladder multiple values – many have similar names, themes - sort your values into groupings that together comprise or support a primary or core value

narrow down to 2 core values.

try noticing:

  • when your values are present, absent, compromised. how does it feel?

  • what are your values in action? what are the activities, behaviours, actions, habits that allow you to practice what you value?


values list:

achievement

activism

adventure

ambition

authenticity

balance

beauty

belonging

calm

challenge

change

collaboration

commitment

communication

community

competence

connection

consistency

contribution

creativity

curiosity

discipline

diversity

education

efficiency

effort

equality

excellence

faith

fame

family

fitness

freedom

friendship

fulfilment

fun

generosity

giving back

grace

gratitude

growth

harmony

health

honesty

hope

humour

independence

individualism

influence

initiative

innovation

integrity

intellect

intuition

joy

justice

kindness

knowledge

leadership

learning

legacy

leisure

love

loyalty

meaning

open-mindedness

optimism

order

patience

peace

perseverance

power

pride

privacy

recognition

respect

responsibility

risk-taking

safety

security

self expression

service

significance

simplicity

spirituality

stability

success

treamwork

tradition

travel

trust

truth

uniqueness

usefulness

vision

vulnerability

wealth

well being

wisdom

karen brandyComment