The Importance of Understanding Your Values
Here Are The Top Ten Values Of Humanity
Family
Humour/Fun
Caring
Respect
Friendship
Trust
Commitment
Enthusiasm
Creativity
Continued Learning
Some other examples of values are success, honesty, belonging and health. Activities such as reading, swimming or socialising would be symptoms of our values. For example, if you feel reading is a value, it is probably more accurate to assume that your actual value is learning, or relaxing. Think about the actual reason as to what led you to read?
Values explained ;
” It’s not hard to make decisions
when you know what your values are. ” – Roy Disney
Understanding exactly what it is that you value is the perfect starting point for understanding your-self and understanding your motivators.
Are you committed to honesty and integrity? Or are you fine with some compromises and juggling or side-stepping in order to get what you want?
Are you totally committed to your career irrespective of anything else, or would you rather lead a more balanced life?
Often the most powerful changes come from within – from understanding yourself and knowing always the boundaries beyond which you would not go, the areas where you may compromise and the aspects that do not matter enough for you to take a stand on!
While some values might seem to feel permanent or enduring, our values needn’t be fixed. We always have the power to choose our values, letting go of those extrinsic values that no longer serve us and cultivating those intrinsic values that truly support us.
The Benefits of understanding your values :
If you want to gain tremendous clarity around your life, your decisions, what matters most to you and ultimately live a happy and successful life, then understanding your values is fundamental.
Your values influence your behaviours, your choices and your emotions. Your values influence your habits, your lifestyle and your social experiences. Your values are your motivators and give you purpose for getting up in the morning.
Ultimately, through understanding your values you will be able to prioritise effectively, make consistent decisions and take action in a way that leads you to success and happiness in the areas you pursue.
Why does this matter? For three primary reasons:
1) Time is the most limited resource.
2) Secondly, the decisions you make are far more consistent when you understand your values. When you know what is most important to you, you can prioritise and make consistent decisions to progress you towards your goals.
3) When it comes to Happiness, understanding your values is a fundamental building block to gaining tremendous focus and clarity of your goals.
”Happiness is when what you think, what you say, and what you do are in harmony.” -Mahatma Gandhi
This quote from the preeminent leader of India inspired movements for non-violence, civil rights and freedom across the world sums up how the heart, mind, body and soul work in unison.
The heart is what represents your values, the things that are most important to you. When you make choices that are in line with your values, you experience harmony, a feeling that leads to satisfaction and happiness.
Ultimately, understanding your values helps you make choices to experience congruency, success and happiness.
