Your values become your destiny’ – Ghandi

Each of us is gifted with our very own inner guidance system, directing us towards our personal truths; an inner fire of sorts that lights us up and moves us from within. When we choose to utilise our inner compass and walk in the direction of our values, we truly embody our unique expression in this world to live a life infused with authenticity, fulfilment and meaning.

What are values?

Values are aspects of our life that are important to us. Area and components of our life that feed our soul, resonate with our truth and generate a feeling of purpose, joy and alignment from deep within. The world around us is bursting with variety and this is reflected within the mixture of everyone’s unique list of values.

Life has a way of steering us away from ourselves and we can often feel lost, confused and unfulfilled. Perhaps social conditioning imposed layers upon us that clouded our authenticity and led us down a path that doesn’t feel true to us? Perhaps a relationship influenced us in a way that we lost sight of our heartfelt passions and truths? Regardless of how we got led astray, there is always an opportunity for us to turn inwards, peel back the layers and discover what is important to us at the core.

On my journey, back in 2016, I found myself about to graduate with a degree that didn’t resonate. I could see a career path unfolding that would eventually result in dissatisfaction, melancholy and a lingering sense of inauthenticity. I had not been consciously choosing to live a life that demonstrated my truth. Upon the discovery of ‘values’, I chose to move forward in the direction of the values that I had identified with and that I knew would bring me closer to myself.

Here are some examples of values to give you an idea of what some of us may value in life;

Freedom
Creativity
Passion
Achievement
Independence
Family
Connection
Balance
Friendship
Relationship
Peace
Nature
Abundance
Self-respect
Simplicity
Appreciation
Fitness
Humour
Care for others
Community
Knowledge
Home
Security
Change
Excitement
Cooperation
Fun
Purpose
Speed
Personal Development
Humour
Adventure
Spirituality
Giving back
Sustainability

How can I define my values?

Realising your values is a simple activity that can be done in minutes and yet it has the power to potentially drastically change the course of your life. There is a deep inner knowing of one’s values however sometimes you may find it hard to access this aspect of you and some values may only become apparent over time as you discover yourself more deeply.

To connect with your inner guidance and discover your heartfelt values, you may wish to sit down with your journal and ask the following questions whilst you note down the values that pop into your head;
1. What really matters to you?
2. What really moves you and makes you feel alive?
3. When were you most balanced and how were you living your life at that time?
4. When did you feel most fulfilled and how were you living your life at that time?
5. When do you feel the truest to yourself?
6. What inspires you about the people you admire?

I have found that my values seem to slightly change or I tend to add new ones over time as I transform or discover deeper truths about myself. We exist in a physical world of constant change and we can expect our values to reflect the changes that we see in ourselves over time. My values are as follows (I have added more information for greater clarity);

Spirituality
Variety (newness)
Freedom
Connection (spiritually, to myself and like-minded people)
Creativity (expression)
Nature
Adventure (exploration)
Fun
Purpose (my service work in the world)

Now that I know my values, what’s next?

Once you have identified and become familiar with your values, you can begin to work with them and use them to your advantage on both a long and short term basis.

In the short term, you may choose to take rapid action that can have immediate effect. For example, if you find yourself in a low mood throughout the day, you may choose to partake in an activity that is in alignment with one of your values and perhaps your mood will shift. If you value nature you could go for a walk, if you value friendship you may visit a friend or if you value creativity you could delve into a creative project.

The real magic appears when you notice the areas of your life that are not in alignment with your values and you boldly choose to rearrange your life to live in accordance with them. It can be difficult to admit to yourself that big changes may need to be made and this is often where much intention, trust and action comes into play.

Your values can act as illuminated signposts, guiding you in the direction of your own personal bliss. It’s almost as if realising the values themselves create the signposts, intention to move ever-closer towards your values enables you to locate the signpost, trust provides you with the bravery to follow its directions and taking action to walk its path delivers you straight into your personalised paradise.

Sometimes identifying your values may ignite or further emphasise an unshakable urge within you to make certain changes in your career, your lifestyle, your relationships, your hobbies etc.

A simple test that you can do to check your alignment with your values is to write them out and mark a number from 1-10 next to each of them, 10 being the most aligned and 1 the least. This can be done in both short term and long term instances and is a great way to figure out why you may be feeling unbalanced or slightly ‘off’ at any particular time.

Upon realising my values I made the decision to leave my pre-determined career path behind to instead venture into a life of travel that I knew provided me with a lifestyle that resonated at the time. In doing so, I inadvertently stumbled upon a career path that was perfectly in alignment with my values and allowed me to live more authentically. It seemed that once I began to take action to live a life that felt more true to me, I became a magnet for further authenticity.

Therefore alignment with one’s values seems to breed further alignment as we surround ourselves with the setting, people and general lifestyle that resonates at the core.

How do we feel when we live in alignment with our values?

When you have designed your life to live by your values, you live a life infused with joy, peace, fulfilment, meaning and above all authenticity.

Though your journey in this world is bound to take you on a roller-coaster ride of highs and lows, when you align with your values a lingering background feeling of ‘being on the right path’ is present. You feel that you are living the life that is true to you rather than a life that may be someone else’s truth. Knowing this is truly a gift that enables you to cherish every precious moment.

Prior to the discovery of my values, I felt lost. In the present day, I have crafted a life around my values that have given rise to not only a more joyous existence but a more magical one too. It seems that my experiences are further endowed with a serendipitous flow as synchronicity guides me along. The universe has often mysteriously provided me with exactly what I need when I need it and my dreams have manifested into reality quicker than I could ever have imagined.

I often feel that the universe is typically on my side as we walk together hand in hand. Furthermore, I’ve discovered a heightened sense of courage, trust, spirituality and above all, a truly exceptional and overwhelming love for life.

With Gratitude,