Why Values Matter
This is our World
We live in a world full of noise and confusion. People have lost trust in authority. Communities are crumbling. Established ideas and beliefs are eroding. There is a loss of leadership.
So what can people use to help them make good choices in this shifting landscape when wise counsel is often hard to find?
The answer lies within. The answer is values.
Why do Values Matter?
People with a clear sense of their values have a reference point for their choices. They feel clear about their place in the world. They certainly do not suffer imposter syndrome.
Our values are unique to us. There is no pattern for what the perfect values set is; not one shared choice of words that makes the ideal human. Part of the joy of the human race is how different we can all be. One person’s values could be the antithesis of another’s.
But values-driven people are responsive, not reactive. They hold themselves to account, take responsibility for their path, and are resilient when challenged. They are tolerant of different views, since they are less likely to feel personally diminished by them. In short, values help us be our best, more often.
The Power of Purpose
Purpose is an essential feature of lives lived in the round. Full lives that pass the rocking chair test with flying colours. Living with purpose leads to a happier, healthier, longer life. It reduces risks of chronic diseases and cognitive decline, improves sleep, enhances psychological resilience, increases longevity.
Purpose grants people who have it wellbeing and happiness. They have meaningful goals and form strong social bonds. Aristotle called it Eudaimonia: the ultimate form of happiness, a life lived with clear intent.
The Link
If we care about a thing, we take care with what gets us there. So we make the effort to guide our steps. We build clarity around our actions. We raise our expectations of our own behaviors. And that way, we achieve what we set out to do.
We are accomplished, fulfilled, proud of ourselves. We have the warm sense of a life well lived. We have become our own coach. Our own counsellor. Our own cheerleader. Our own conscience.
Finding the Power
People with a clear sense of values and purpose and organisations with a clear vision, mission and values.
These are the ones who trust their decisions, rise to their potential, who feel at ease in their skin. The ones who take the right way, not the easy way. Look out into the world. The people and bodies who cause the maximum disruption – for good or bad – are wholly connected to theirs.
If you haven’t discovered your purpose and values, better watch out for an enemy who has.
Contact Erika
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