Identifying Your Values
And Understanding How They
Help You Live Congruently

Life can really test us at times. As humans we tend to be motivated by pain or pleasure i.e. it’s tempting to move towards something that is pleasurable or move away from something that’s painful, either decision however may not be a values driven. The only way to make decisions that are congruent, is to truly know what our highest values are.

From a young age I was encouraged to consider who I wanted to be in the world and how I wanted to show up. This process is made easier by identifying what your highest values are, they in turn become like a lighthouse guiding you home to the highest version of yourself.

It’s not about picking values that are noble or altruistic, it’s about picking values that are congruent with who you are and the life you wish to create. To live a purpose-led life it’s paramount to understand what’s important to you and what you want to make more space for in your daily life. I was encouraged to consider what I admired in different people and which qualities, and which behaviours were less appealing to me.

There are only two authorities in my life. My Maker (God, Source, the Universe, let’s not get stuck on terminology) and my highest values. When I have a decision to make that I’m weighing up I come back to “how is life supporting me right now” and “how would this decision sit within my values?”

Instructions: 

Use this list of values or another. You may find there are words missing that you’d like to use, add them in. There are no set rules, these lists simply help you to better understand yourself and your inner compass.

Step 1:

Go through and circle all the words that stand out to you. Look thorough and notice the similarities in the meaning of the words and group them together. As an example, you may have circled all or some of the following words which tend to reflect the desire to have a spiritual aspect to one’s life.  Mindfulness, Intuition, Synergy, Peace, Reverence, Virtue, Thankfulness, Wisdom, Or you make select the following words because your body is swept with an emotion when you think of these attributes.  Mindfulness, Unflappability, Poise, Peace 

Step 2:

Separate to the list consider what areas of your life, do you spend the most time. For example, you may spend at least 4 hours a day on your “health” by the time you exercise, shop for healthy foods, supplements etc. and cook your meals. Consider where you spend most of your money? Write down your daily and weekly expenses. Seeing where you spend your money is very powerful.

Step 3: 

Then read through your grouped values, determine your top 5 core values and how much time you currently spend in each are. Put them in a descending order of priorities based on your current routine. i.e., Give yourself a score out of 10 on how much of your time you spend on each area right now, currently in your life. For example, you may want to be someone who’s incredibly healthy. You even selected Health, Fitness, Activeness, Vitality and yet you currently only spend a few hours a week on your health and much of your money is spent on social events and alcohol. So right now, you may only rate at 3 out 10 for your health. You wouldn’t place health as your top value right now, once you score each area you may see that it’s actually your lowest priority. However, you may score an 8 out 10 in another area. That’s your top value right now and there’s power in considering if you’re managing your time and money congruently with who you want to be. If you wish to change the direction of your life, then the following steps are key.

Step 4: 

Write down your ideal order of priorities. Cast a vision of what’s more ideal for you. 

Step 5: 

Write down some daily or weekly action steps that would help shift the needle for you with your current priorities and values. 

Step 6:

Revisit these lists in 3 months’ time and see how you’re tracking. You will notice some significant changes. Create new actions steps and keep tracking.

LIST OF VALUES