Defining Your Values to Create Standards for Your Life!
In this blog post, YOU will discover:
An understanding the Importance of Values: Learn why values are fundamental to setting standards and boundaries in your personal and professional life.
Practical Steps to Identify Your Values: Follow a simple five-step process to discover and define your authentic values that guide your decisions and actions.
As educators, we often hear about setting boundaries and how important they are. One concept we don’t often hear about that I think is equally important is establishing standards. And no, not the standards we use for instruction. I’m talking about standards of living. Standards of living are the non-negotiable truths I live by, such as I serve myself before I serve others or When I pause, I find clarity in the present. To me, standards of living come even before I create boundaries, because these provide awareness of what is non-negotiable for me. Before we can delve into boundaries or standards, we must first address an essential piece of the educator puzzle: values.
What are Values?
I like to think of values as the four corners of a puzzle—they hold everything together. No matter how complex (or simple) the puzzle may be, those corners are crucial. When it comes to setting standards and boundaries, values, like those corner pieces, are essential to the longevity of our standards and boundaries, both inside and outside the classroom.
Values are the fundamental beliefs and guiding principles that influence our attitudes, decisions, and actions. They reflect what is most important to us and serve as the foundation for our personal standards and boundaries. Values help us define our purpose, prioritize our goals, and navigate life's choices with clarity and integrity.
For example, one of my personal values is simplicity, which helps me make decisions both personally and professionally. Before completing a task, project, or any activity, I will ask myself, what is the simplest way to accomplish the goal I have. And this helps me to take that course of action that aligns best with me. The value of simplicity also comes into play when I am overwhelmed within the classroom and start to feel like I need to create new materials for different topics. I will stop and ask myself, “what do I already have created that I can use” and this will help me to refocus and regulate once again.
Why are Values Important?
If you ask me, these are pretty powerful concepts. Yet, instead of learning about values, standards, or boundaries, our teacher preparation classes focus on creating lesson plans and units. And while those are important, I’d argue that if we don’t know who we are while teaching those lesson plans, how impactful can they truly be? Knowing who you are is the missing piece of the puzzle because without you, the puzzle is never complete.
Values become our anchors, guiding us when we feel lost and helping us make decisions both inside and outside the classroom. If you ever feel lost or stuck, it’s likely related to your values. You might be living out of alignment with them, or perhaps you’ve outgrown them. One thing I know for sure is that when I bring awareness to my values, I can create momentum and take back control of my life personally and professionally, faster than when I don’t.
Values are Authentic to YOU!
It's important to understand that your values may vary personally or professionally. That is they might apply exclusively to your personal life, your professional life, or both. The process of discovering your values is designed to work for you, so you get to decide how to align your values with different areas of your life. Some values might resonate strongly in both contexts, while others may be specific to one area. The key is to identify what works best for you and to embrace the values that will guide you most effectively.
The steps below show the process for identifying values for your ideal day, but you can easily adapt the exercise for the ideal classroom, ideal day at work, or ideal family vacation - whatever it is you are looking to create standards and boundaries for, you can apply this activity to!
5 Simple Steps to Identifying Your Authentic Values
Set the Stage:
Before diving into identifying your values, center yourself and be present. If you’re feeling rushed or stressed, the energy you bring into this activity won’t be creative. Save this activity for a time when you feel more centered so you can remain present and less distracted during the activity!
Find a space that is comfortable for you and that allows you to be creative and focused. While I love working at my desk, for this activity, I find that I focus better with a nice cup of coffee on my family room couch.
Find a list of values that you will use in step 3. I personally love to use the list of values Brene Brown shares that can be found here!
Visualization Exercise:
Once you’ve found a comfortable place, it’s time to begin! I like to begin the visualization process by listening to an inspirational video or guided meditation. On YouTube, I will use the search feature for what I am looking for, such as ‘guided meditation to help with visualization’. Just use some keywords to describe what you are seeking, and I am sure there is a video out there for you!
After listening to the meditation, spend a few minutes visualizing your ideal self in your ideal life. Close your eyes, allow your body to relax, picture what you look like, what you sound like, and what feelings you experience on this ideal day. Imagine your day from start to finish, capturing every detail you can. If you find your mind starting to wander, that’s okay. Simply notice it, and bring your thoughts back to your visualization.
Select Your Values:
Once you complete your visualization, open your eyes, and start to read through the list of values you printed out earlier. Reflecting on your visualization, pick 10-15 values that resonate with you. Don’t second guess yourself—simply highlight or circle the values that speak to you.
Then, take a break from the activity. Yes, walk away from the activity - even though we haven’t finished yet! Engage in something different before returning to narrow down your values. Allow your mind time and space to breathe before coming back for the next step!
Narrow Down Your Values:
When you have had some time away from your list (ideally, at least 1-2 hours, but could even be later that day, or the following day), review the values you selected, and then reduce your list to 5-8 values. Then, as we did before, give yourself some time and space from the list. You might find that you are wanting to keep all the values you selected!
Celebrate Your Values:
Once you return to your list, pare down those 5-8 values down to 2-3 values and then celebrate them! These values will become your anchors as you move forward in creating your standards and boundaries (which we will cover in the next blog post). Remember, your values may shift over time, and that's okay—it’s all part of the process. Trust in what comes to you and embrace it.
As you define and embrace your values, you will find they not only guide your professional journey but also enrich your personal life, creating a harmonious blend between the two. Make sure to come back for the next part of the series where you will read about how to use your values to create standards of living both inside and outside the classroom!
Knowing who you are is the missing piece of the puzzle because without you, the puzzle is never complete.