Values - Our Internal Compass

Values can serve as an internal compass - guiding us throughout our lives, shaping our decisions, and alerting us as to when we get off course.

Values are who and what we are all about. Our choices are often deeply rooted in our values - the foundation of who we are. When we live our lives aligned with our values a feeling of harmony or "rightness" may exist. When we live our lives out of alignment with our values, feelings of discontent or conflict may arise.

What are the values that you hold? What are the times in your life when you know you lived according to your values? What was that like? What was it like when you moved away from them?

Take a moment and think of the top five values you hold close. You don't need to struggle to pinpoint one word for each value - perhaps they come to you as combinations, colours or sounds. Some examples of values include: fun, independence, diversity, freedom. Values are something intangible - we can't hold them. Each one of us will hold different values, even if we call them the same. My value of diversity may look very different than yours.

Spend some time over the next few days refining your list of 5 or 6 values that are most important to you. How do you honor these? What happens when they get stepped on?