3.2 Knowing your values
A person’s core values can be thought of as a set of principles that shape their attitudes, behaviour and decision making, influencing their interactions with other people or groups. Core values can relate to personality traits or characteristics, for example being kind, honest or truthful and they can be shaped by life experience, culture and background.
In Session 1 you answered the question ‘Who am I?’ and you may have identified some of your core values through that exercise. You can see what you wrote here [Tip: hold Ctrl and click a link to open it in a new tab. (Hide tip)] .
You may also have your own important principles, such as honesty and integrity, that you do your best to follow. In this section, we will explore how you can become more aware of your core values, thinking about how they can be used to help you to make decisions that affect your life.
Activity 6: Core values
- Read through the list and consider any values that speak to you. If you would rather print this off and circle them, download the list here.
- Add any other core values that you have already identified, that do not appear on this list.
- Look at all the values you have circled (and any you have added) and choose 6 that seem most significant to you. These can be described as your core values.
| Accountability | Curiosity | Honesty | Parenting | Success |
| Achievement | Dignity | Hope | Patience | Teamwork |
| Adaptability | Diversity | Humility | Patriotism | Thrift |
| Adventure | Environment | Humour | Peace | Time |
| Altruism | Efficiency | Inclusion | Perseverance | Tradition |
| Ambition | Equality | Independence | Personal fulfilment | Travel |
| Authenticity | Ethics | Initiative | Power | Trust |
| Balance | Excellence | Integrity | Pride | Truth |
| Beauty | Fairness | Intuition | Recognition | Understanding |
| Being the best | Faith | Job security | Reliability | Uniqueness |
| Belonging | Family | Joy | Resourcefulness | Usefulness |
| Career | Financial stability | Justice | Respect | Vision |
| Caring | Forgiveness | Kindness | Responsibility | Vulnerability |
| Collaboration | Freedom | Knowledge | Risk -taking | Wealth |
| Commitment | Friendship | Leadership | Safety | Well-being |
| Community | Fun | Learning | Security | Wholeheartedness |
| Compassion | Future generations | Legacy | Self-discipline | Wisdom |
| Competence | Generosity | Leisure | Self-expression | |
| Confidence | Giving back | Love | Self-respect | |
| Connection | Grace | Loyalty | Serenity | |
| Contentment | Gratitude | Making a difference | Service | |
| Contribution | Growth | Nature | Simplicity | |
| Cooperation | Harmony | Openness | Spirituality | |
| Courage | Health | Optimism | Sportsmanship | |
| Creativity | Home | Order | Stewardship |
Now in the table below enter your 6 core values across the top. For each core value, try to identify an area where you have practised this core value already in your life and an area where you would like to practise this value in future (see the examples below).
| Core values | Example: kindness | Value 1 | Value 2 | Value 3 | Value 4 | Value 5 | Value 6 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| What I have done | Helped a friend fix their bike. | ||||||
| Things I could do | Be kinder to my sister, who I tend to shout at. |
Once you are aware of your core values you can think about how certain choices might be in keeping or in conflict with your core values.
a.
Option 1: say and do nothing.
b.
Option 2: have a word with Josie and ask her to stop picking on Susan.
c.
Option 3: have a chat with Susan and check if she is OK and how she has been feeling.
The correct answers are b and c.
As you think about your future, keep your core values in mind. This will help you in making decisions that feel right for you, rather than doing what others expect of you or making decisions that don’t seem compatible with your values. By being true to your values in how you act, this will also help you achieve your aspirations for how others see you.