Redefine Your Life 2

Identify Your Core Values

Welcome back to my Redefine Your Life series. Hope you did the exercise yesterday, and as you begin this goal setting journey you are aware of your strength and weaknesses. You may think that we will start to set goals today, but not yet, we still need to do some thinking. The Step 2 – Identify Your Core Values – is all about reflection and identifying the core of what’s truly important to us.

There are so many goal setting instructions, if you google you will get pages and pages full of them. But very rarely is there a step about identifying values. As a result people often set goals that are not congruent with what they really want in their lives and what they want to avoid. So, before we even think about setting goals, it’s essential to take a step back and reflect on our life’s priorities. And generally on the values that matter to us. This way, we can ensure that the goals we establish are in line with what our hearts truly desire.

Of course, as artists and humans, we all share some common aspirations – happiness, health, financial security, love, and respect. But it is vastly different how we measure these abstract values in our lives. What makes me happy might make someone else miserable. So, it is important to go beyond the obvious generalities and define those values.

This is where today’s exercise comes into play. It is quite possible that you never asked yourself those questions, and if you did it was always in the vague form. Deep inside you feel you know what makes you happy and feeling successful, so this will not be difficult exercise. It will actually be fun, because as you write those things down with more detail, you will basically daydream and that’s a fun thing to do. So, take some time to do it. Trust me, you will be very happy you did it.

I suggest using a separate sheet of paper for each of those topics or better yet a dedicated notebook. Don’t worry about grammar or syntax when you write down your definitions – this is just for your eyes, no one will ever read it (unless you decide to share it with someone) .

OK – ready? Here are the five important prompts that will help you identify your core values:

1. I will feel like a successful person when…
2. I will feel genuinely happy when…
3. A happy family life for me is…
4. I feel respected and appreciated when…
5. I know I’m on the right track when…

After you are done with those definitions, take some time to consider what steps you can take right now to start moving towards these semi-goals – because these are not your goals yet.

Speaking from my own experience as a late-blooming artist, I can assure you that it’s never too late to begin redefining your life and working towards your dreams.