Succes: Do Your Values Flow?

To get the best results in life, and have those results align with your destiny, it is important to have your values working together. In our third installment in the success series we’re going to start taking a closer look at your values.

Look over your Values Hierarchy. You may notice that many of your values came from your parents, or your culture. Some were adopted from your peers. Others are based on your life experience.

With all these different sources, values sometimes conflict. Let’s look at the flow of your values. Flow allows your values to work together and support your goals.

Your values flow in two directions. From top to bottom, where each “higher” value leads to the one below it. Then from bottom to top, where each “lower” value supports the one above it.

As you do this be as honest as possible. Go with your immediate reaction. You will probably find a significant number of values that don’t flow well. That’s fine. In my next post we’ll talk about how to correct the flow.

We’re going to look at your list from the top, down, first. Take a look at your first value. Does it create the second value on your list? Is the second value implied in the first value? Is there a natural flow from top to bottom?

For instance, let’s say that your top value is fulfillment, and your second value is safety. These values may relate in some way, but, they don’t flow naturally.

If you find a conflict mark it with an arrow on the right side of your page. Continue this process by looking at your second and third values. Move down the list until you have looked at everything.

We’ll move up the list next. Take a look at your bottom value. Does it support the value above it? Dose it provide a stable foundation from which you can reach the higher value? If you find an issue with the flow then mark it with an arrow on the left side of your page.

When you’re done you’ll probably be left with a page full of arrows. That’s totally normal. 

Have you discovered something you didn’t know about yourself while you did this exercise? I’d love to hear what it is.

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