What are your core personal values?

Brand Values

Recently I’ve been thinking a lot about brand values. In the world of business these help companies define who they are and what is important to them as a business. They help focus company branding and marketing to really tell the true story of the business. And it’s not that different for us as individuals. 

Whether you’re actively selling anything, and whether you’re even aware of it, you have a personal brand. It’s created by what you say and do, and the conclusions people draw about you based on those actions . If you’re frequently posting on instagram about Star Wars, people are probably going to assume you’re a big Star Wars fan. If all your posts are of food, people are probably going to assume you’re a foodie. If you post racist memes, yup you guessed it - people will assume you’re racist. Everything you do and say is telling people who you are. So if you are selling something, or your image impacts your career, or if you just care about how you’re perceived, it’s important to figure out what’s important to you and whether or not your actions are in line with those values. The first step in presenting your true, authentic self is discovering what your core personal values are and who your true, authentic self actually is.

Create Your List

You might be able to easily identify your key words with some quick introspection, but if you’re having trouble you could try checking out sample core value word lists online and see which words jump out to you. Or you could send the long list to 5 people close to you and ask them to tell you which words resonate when they think of who you are. This might also be a chance to think about who you want to be, even if it’s not how you currently feel you’re living. A chance to do better, and be better. Your list can be current or prospective.

Use Your Values

The key way I see an individual making use of a personal core values list is thinking of them as a lens through which you make decisions. It might be decisions about a new job you’re considering, or just making sure that you’re working for a company whose ethos is in line with your own. It might be in deciding where you shop, or who you bank with. It could be in choosing the friends you really invest time and energy into. Even in finding people to date or consider as a potential partner. It might help clarify why a person in your life rubs you the wrong way. Thinking through your list make bring you to realise something in their behaviour is at odds with something really important to you, one of your values. 

Maybe when making a post on social media you start asking yourself “is this post in line with my values?”. Making sure each post is in keeping with at least one of the attributes you consider key to who you are (or want to be) as a person.

Maybe it helps focus where you put your energy: what to read, watch, or listen to. Being intentional about what you do starts with knowing what exactly is important to you to begin with.

Knowing your core personal values gives you a lens through which to think about your personal brand and how people perceive you. To think about how you want to live your life and what a good, successful, intentional life means to you. And how can you know your decisions are in line with your core values if you haven’t taken some time to decide what they are?

I’m sure they’ll change and evolve over time, but here are mine:

Photo by Boudica