As a coach and leadership consultant, I deeply appreciate the power of knowing and making choices that align to my values. It's not always easy to know what it is that we value, and do the work required to really decipher the meat of that value to know it well--to feel the texture of it, the know the weight of it as if it is a stone in the palm of your hand. To know yourself well is to know what you care most about in your core. Another way to think of it is by asking yourself the question as a form of a self-directed check in:
What do I stand for?
Embedded in that question is an implication of how others see me and what they can intuit about what my values are from the action I take and the beliefs I espouse. Why does this matter? It's all information you get to use as you tune in for this information, possibly for the first time.
When we tune into our heart and listen to our body, we get information that serves us to become conscious of the greater impact of our choices in our lives.
One of the most important questions you can ask yourself as you get clear on who you are today and what you want is--
What are the values that define who I am?
Last weekend I had the honor of being one of four speakers at the 2018 Women's Symposium hosted by the Lincoln City Chamber of Commerce on the beautiful Oregon Coast.
The subject of my 1-hour workshop was Honoring Values to Live the Life Your Truly Love, a concept that felt foreign to some who confessed to not having spent much of any time in the days, weeks, years prior thinking about who they are and what they want in this one precious life to live.
Values represent who you are right now. They are personal beliefs and principles you hold to be of worth in your life. Values are not chosen. They are intrinsic to you, like a thumbprint
As you become conscious of who you are in this moment, explore your values by understanding
what they are and which are core to you,
where they came from,
where they show up in our lives,
what it feels like to honor and express them, and
what it feels like when they are ignored.
Inquiries
What values do you hold to be core to you? List 5-10
What key, life shaping, reverberating experiences have you had that speak to one or many of these values? How does this experience inform your understanding of what's important to you?
What is a value you are ignoring in your life?
What are three commitments you can make today to honor this value in your life?
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