'Live your Values'
Live out of your imagination
instead of
out of your memory.
Les Brown
It’s essential to know who you really are before deciding what you really want. Many people ask themselves:
- where am I going?
- how am I going to get there?
But most importantly forget to ask:
- who am I?
When I’m coaching people on how best to manage their careers and realise their work aspirations, it never ceases to amaze me that the vast majority are looking for a job that they can fit into, rather than ask themselves “how does the job fit me?”
Your behaviour should be driven by your values, because these tell who you really are. These are the things that are most important to you. An easy way of eliciting your values is to make a list of at least twenty people who you admire, from Leonardo da Vinci to Leonardo di Caprio, and then write down the qualities that you admire in them.
You will then have a list of your values. Now prioritise these values and make a list of the top seven. These values are at the core of who you are, and violating them would be abhorrent to you. For example, included in my top seven values are ‘making a difference’, ‘freedom’ and ‘creativity’. If I were in a job which was routine, with little scope for creativity or self-expression, and which made little impact on anyone, then my spirit would start to wither.
Any behaviour which isn’t consistent with your values will leave you feeling unhappy and unfulfilled. You can easily check to see if you’re living your values. Score a mark out of ten for how well you’re living each of your top seven. If you have a few low scores, then it’s likely that you’re feeling unfulfilled.
Unfortunately many organisations are intent on controlling their employees, when what their people value most is the freedom to express themselves. It’s this disconnect between the values of the employer and those of the employee that leads to people jumping ship or exhibiting ‘presenteeism’ – they are there in body, but not in spirit. Fortunately, a growing number of organisations are trying to motivate their employees by listening to what they want to achieve and developing ‘life’ programmes that benefit both parties.
Ask yourself, if you were granted a wish and could achieve anything you wanted and knew that you couldn’t fail, what would you do with your life? Is this what you’re doing now? What would you get from your new life that you’re not getting now?
Once you’ve determined your values you’re in a position to create your vision.
