Читать книгу If This Is A Secret Why Am I Telling It? - Russell Drake - Страница 6

Values mean different things to different people. Everyone has their own idea of what values mean. The definition may depend on if you are talking about family values, American values, personal values or “old time values”. Heads start nodding in a knowing fashion when values are mentioned.

Allen Cox said, “Values are guiding devices to enhance our ability to achieve our purpose.”

How would you answer the following questions in determining what you value?

What personal convictions do I have?

What rules guide my life?

What shapes my life?

What is significant in my life?

What do I represent?

What do I need to fulfill my passion and purpose?

Your values must reflect what you believe. You cannot be passionate and purposeful if you believe one thing and do another. Stick to your values no matter the resistance.

There are two types of values: Values we live by and values we aspire to. They are differentiated by our personal behavior. If I profess that I value a healthy lifestyle while exercising and eating nutritious meals then I am living that healthy lifestyle value. However, if I am sedentary and eat junk foods then the healthy personal lifestyle value is one that I aspire to.

Honesty and truth are values that my Mother taught me at a young age. Of course, she did not call them values. She called them “doing what was right”. I was a good student and enjoyed going to school. I recall an afternoon in fifth grade taking a history test and for some reason could not figure out the answers. Unconsciously, I turned my head and looked at the test of the student to my left. When I realized what I had done, I looked up at the teacher but she had not seen me. I felt guilty. I felt so guilty that I stopped taking the test and turned it in. I told the teacher that I had cheated. I went back to my desk and put my head down. In a movie of the week I might have gotten a second chance for being honest. In real life I failed the history test but, I passed my Mother’s test – “doing what’s right”. I made sure I was better prepared for history thereafter.

The following exercise has a list of possible values. The list on the next two pages is designed to help you identify your values and determine your highest priority values. This list is not comprehensive so feel free to add your own.

Step one – Choose twenty values.

Step two – Next choose your top ten values.

Step three - Choose your top five.

Step four - Rank the top five.

You will have your top five priority values.

Achievement	Knowledge
Advancement	Leadership
Affection	Loyalty
Belief System	Love
Challenging problems	Money
Character	Meaningful work
Creativity	Originality
Competition	Organization
Commitment	Patience
Citizenship	Passion
Discipline	Peace
Discovery	Prestige
Education	Persistence
Empathy	Personal strength
Environmental awareness	Pleasure
Entertainment	Personal development
Fame	Power
Financial Security	Playing Sports
Friendship	Role Model
Family	Safety
Honesty	Showing expertise
Helping others	Spirituality
Inspiring others	Stability
Respect	Simplicity
Integrity	Tolerance
Independence	Truth
Inner harmony	Wisdom
Introspection	Working alone
Justice	Working with others

The last step is to determine what type of values you have prioritized. Do you live these values or do you aspire to these values? If you live them, that is great. If you aspire to them you now have a guide.