By understanding our values, we can experience greater levels of satisfaction and also simplify our decision making.

Our values are our guiding principles in life, determining our daily actions and behaviour. They reflect our ideas about what is right or wrong, good or bad etc, and form the basis for all our decisions. They act somewhat like a personal compass directing what we do, and play a crucial role in determining the outcomes in our life.

A key ingredient in creating a life of fulfillment and happiness is ensuring our values are of our conscious choosing and reflect our true desires. The problem we encounter around our values is that often we are being driven by inherited values that we are usually not even aware of. So we are at the mercy of subconscious forces driving our life. We find ourselves just feeling like something’s amiss, but we can’t quite put our finger on it.

Having said that, our values can and do change. They change naturally as we grow and learn new things. They often change following significant life events and they can CHANGE BY DESIGN. Operating from a consciously chosen set of values allows us to create the life that we want to live.

Now there’s a nice thought!

Begin now looking at what values you hold dear. What emotional states do you seek to experience the most and with the greatest frequency?? Brainstorm a list of what’s most important to you. Some examples of values include love, health, adventure, creativity, freedom.

Once you have your list, reflect on it and take the time to prioritise your values. Create your own top ten list and get really clear on what’s driving you. Consider how these values show up in your life. What decisions have you made that you feel really pleased with? How do these reflect your values? What about decisions that felt out of alignment with what was important to you? Notice whether they violated some of the values you hold dear. See what you reveal.

Now that you have a list of your top 10 values, you can use it as an excellent tool when it comes to making decisions. When choosing whether to follow a certain path, consider how this path would satisfy your values. Effective decisions are decisions that are in alignment with your own set of consciously chosen values.

About the author

I'm a professionally trained and credentialed coach with over 1200 client hours. I have a strong corporate background (previously a Brand Manager with Unilever in Sydney), and am passionate about working with executives to make work-life more productive and enjoyable. I hold an M.Com in Marketing and HR, am a mentor and trainer of coaches, and have achieved the PCC credential through the International Coach Federation.