#9 Let's talk values
I've met people in coaching who are not aware of their values, as they can't name them, and people who are aware of them but not fully honoring them at the moment.
And I want to focus on exploring how we can discover our values and how to name them. Hey, even say them out loud to make sure they resonate.
Values define what's important now, they are our fundamental beliefs, but they can also change over time.
There are different ways to get started, although the most common one seems to be the online assessment, where you have to select your values from a very long list and then refine it, and done, you get your values. This can be a start, but personally, I don't think this really presents a real picture.
I am proposing 2 fairly simple exercises you can try on your own time. As usual, grab pen and paper, and start when you're ready.
Think back on the most important experiences you had in your life. Why are they important to you? What have you learned from them? Who were you then?
You can pick 1 or 2 experiences and write them down - what is emerging? What feelings and actions are coming to light? Do you notice words repeating themselves? What values are you seeing coming to life? Pick 4 - 6 values that are emerging.
Value strings - what comes from values?
Once you have the values identified, create the strings and score each value, from 0 - 10, based on the importance for you right now:
For example, I'll take courage and learning as values, and the string can look something like this:
courage - out of comfort zone - a leap of faith - exploration (7,5 as a score)
learning - nurture - growing - not wasting time - no regrets (8 as a score)
In your day-to-day, how are you honoring these values? What else are you learning?
I should also mention that you might not need a very long list of values. And, as I said earlier, they will change over time. Also, just because a value of yours is not lived 100% now doesn't mean that it's not a value for you. For instance, the independence and creativity coming from traveling are two of my values - but just because I wasn't able to travel doesn't mean that they are not my values anymore. They show themselves in other activities and actions.
Hope this helps!
Stay curious,
Flo
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