What Are My Personal Core Values?
When was the last time you reflected on your own personal core values? Now is an excellent time to take an inventory of those core values that matter most to you. Core values are our fundamental beliefs that guide our decisions and behaviors. Often our values are deeply ingrained in our innate thinking. We take our values for granted and sometimes it is even difficult to name them or describe them.
To get you thinking about your core values, ask yourself these questions:
- What do you like to talk about with other people?
- What do you enjoy doing in your leisure time?
- What do you like to spend money on?
- Which tasks do you do more often and better?
- What inspires you and motivates you to act?
- What is important to you in your life?
As we are a diverse mix of people from different cultures and communicate in multiple languages, you can search the web for different lists of core values in your native language. This is also a fun activity to do with support groups, friends, and even work colleagues.
To get started, you can try this exercise in English and German to determine your core values.
Although I prefer to print these lists and mark them up and write down on cards, there are several online coaching tools and free assessments that are also fun to use:
Define Your Top 10 Core Values
After writing down and even grouping your core values, you need to narrow down the values to your top 10 values. Write these ten values on index cards and then prioritize them.
In my case, one of my most important values is “Freedom”. Freedom can signify many concepts, so, I must understand abstractly and concretely what this means for me. Freedom, indeed, is a powerful word that has cultural connotations. To get clarity, I might ask myself, what do I understand as “Freedom,” and what does it mean for me? Is “Freedom” existent in my work and personal life? I might even ask myself, is my value of “Freedom” more important than possibly another essential value of “Family?”
Rank Your Values
As a final step, it is crucial to rank your values on a scale from 1 to 10 (1 – being most important and 10 – being of less importance). As a final step, write on the back of the index cards any words that express this value, draw an image, describe any concept, emotions that come to mind. Use your creative energy to connect to your innermost needs and thoughts and allow for this process to ground you in the present. Keep these cards handy and reflect upon them when you are feeling doubt or frustration. Review them and determine if some priorities have changed as time passes.
Knowing your core values is essential for you to able to express your needs in your personal lives, family structures, and careers. Your core values are the foundations and compass that drive your career decisions, personal ambitions, and life purpose. Becoming more precise on what they are can only help you to express yourself more authentically.
Eileen’s Coaching Tips
I look forward to hearing if this exercise was helpful. Please share within our Digital Diva Deluxe group what your core values are and why they are essential to you! Stay tuned for the next coaching tips with Eileen and continue discovering your true self and purpose.
This post was also published at www.digital-diva-deluxe.de
This was really interesting. I am looking forward to your next post about interpersonal coaching. Thanks Eileen!