The Core Value Exercise (or how I learned to stop worrying and discover my nature) (4 min read)

Brandon's New Substack: https://thethoughtdistillery.substack.com/

Taking a break from my usual article style, I have a quick exercise which can bring the reader clarity in finding out what they deem most valuable. Personally, I found this to be very helpful in narrowing down the values most important to me. The idea is that, once you whittle these down, you are more conscious of your direction in life and can aim to keep on the path of your own agreed destiny.

The Exercise

Look at the list of values below. Give yourself three or four minutes (and a handful of sticky notes) and write down the ten most important values to you. Once you have ten, set a new timer for 30 seconds and remove three values that you consider to be the “least important” (note - this doesn’t mean these values aren’t important to you!). Once again, set a new timer for 20 seconds and remove another two values. This can be a difficult exercise, especially with the time limits, but it’s important to go with your gut. Repeat this once more so you’re left with three words. These are your core values — the three things that make up your character. Now you’re ready to live your life with these values as a guiding force.

After finishing the exercise, you might realise that the three values you picked doesn’t feel representative of you. For example, if you picked discipline, restraint and control, in combination they might feel too one-dimensional. Individually, they may have seemed like positive attributes but seeing them grouped together can appear self-absorbed and not compassionate enough. This can be a perfect time to step back and consider making some changes.

You also may have picked values which are positive combinations but you are not yet living in accordance with them. As long as you identify this fact yourself, this doesn't matter and you can now see this realisation as a new beginning.

Doing this exercise was a struggle as it was difficult to discard seven of my values. However, once I realised that the three I picked, would not be sacrificed, I now have a unwavering foundation to build off of, and can re-introduce my other values which I discarded.

I hope you find this exercise helpful.

Thanks for reading,

Brandon

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