Jul 1
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Bernard Shannon
Living with Purpose: Know Your Core Values
Understanding your personal values or creating a personal value statement is essential for living a purposeful and authentic life. Personal values act as an internal compass, guiding decisions, shaping priorities, and helping individuals stay aligned with what truly matters to them. They form the foundation of your identity and sense of purpose. In moments of uncertainty or moral dilemma, knowing your values provides clarity and direction, reducing stress and inner conflict.
Clarity of values allow for deeper self-awareness, fosters resilience, and helps maintain integrity in both personal and professional settings. Whether navigating relationships, career choices, or long-term goals, a clear value foundation ensures consistency and coherence in actions.
When challenges arise, individuals grounded in their values are more likely to persevere with confidence and self-trust. It also encourages empathy and respect, as recognizing one’s own values often opens space to appreciate the diverse values of others.
Compromising your values is a deeply personal decision that depends on context, consequences, and the nature of the values at stake. While flexibility is often necessary in relationships, work, and society, compromising core values can lead to internal conflict, loss of integrity, and diminished self-respect.
Values represent your guiding principles—what you believe is right, meaningful, or important. When you compromise on essential values such as honesty, compassion, or fairness, even for practical reasons, it can create lasting discomfort or regret. This is especially true when the compromise benefits others at your moral expense, or when it goes against deeply held beliefs.
However, not all values are absolute. Some may be preferences or shaped by culture and experience. In complex situations, it’s important to differentiate between core values and flexible ones. In collaborative work, relationships, or peace-building, flexibility doesn’t mean abandoning your values but finding creative solutions that respect both your principles and those of others
Ultimately, personal values give life depth and meaning. They shape who we are and how we contribute to the world. By reflecting on and articulating them, we not only better understand ourselves but also become more intentional in how we live, lead, and connect with others.
Exercise to discern your core values
1. Who do you admire?
List 3 – 5 people whom you most admire. They may be living, dead, real or imaginary, etc. Example: your mother, father, teacher, preacher, Buddha, Gandalf, Ghandi, Jesus, Laozi, Yoda, ….
4, Sequence
Put the all the qualities you listed in order from most important to least. There can be NO ties, you must make a choice.
5. Core Values
From this list select the top 3 – 5 qualities. These will represent your most core values and should never be compromised.
List 3 – 5 people whom you most admire. They may be living, dead, real or imaginary, etc. Example: your mother, father, teacher, preacher, Buddha, Gandalf, Ghandi, Jesus, Laozi, Yoda, ….
2. Why?
List 3 – 5 qualities for each of those whom you admire, which expresses what you admire about them. Example: integrity, love, compassion, humor, decisiveness, intelligence….
List 3 – 5 qualities for each of those whom you admire, which expresses what you admire about them. Example: integrity, love, compassion, humor, decisiveness, intelligence….
3. Dark Times
List 1 – 3 qualities that you possess which helped you get through dark times. Example: perseverance, confidence, compassion.
List 1 – 3 qualities that you possess which helped you get through dark times. Example: perseverance, confidence, compassion.
4, Sequence
Put the all the qualities you listed in order from most important to least. There can be NO ties, you must make a choice.
5. Core Values
From this list select the top 3 – 5 qualities. These will represent your most core values and should never be compromised.