When your goals and values are not in line it is as if
you have two horses pulling you in different directions.
Let me explain.
Most people agree that goals can basically be
described as what you are striving for and making plans
to achieve. They are your objectives: Your aim. And often
they seem to be more easily measurable than values.
While values are what is important or significant to you:
What you value. Ideally you want your top 5 or so goals
to be in line with your top 5 or so values. The significance
may not seem apparent at first, but let me share Bob
Roberts story.
After attending a workshop I taught on Bob came to me
and said he loved his job but for some reason achieving
his career goals seemed to be a real struggle lately.
I proceeded to inquire about Bob's goals, learning he had
recently revamped his career goals. He now had very
clear and defined goals. The top three were to expand his
sales territory, increase his income and become a trainer
for new sales people with the company.
Next I asked Bob about his values. He responded by
looking at me as if I had just spoken a foreign language.
I explained to Bob that values were those often intangible
things that are important to us. Being a religious and
family man Bob quickly and confidently stated his top
three values were his relationship with his wife, his
children and his spirituality.
Then, it was time for Bob to share what he was doing to
realize his goals? He reported he was traveling more,
out of town frequently 4 days a week, including week-ends,
which meant missing services on Sunday, his son's
ball games on Saturdays and more. Ahh, I thought,
we are on to something here. And I bet you can already
see at least part of the problem, just a Bob did.
Bob's goals were not being supported by his values. In fact
Bob's goals were leading him away from what he valued.
Recognizing this actually made the solution fairly simple.
Bob rearranged his schedule to take into account his values.
He no longer was away from home on the week-ends. No
more missed ball games and Sunday services. And when
Bob was away, he and his wife had pre-arranged times
for phones calls and more.
Values will change as you go through life. For instance
as a teen you may find that a spouse, variety or travel are
not in your top 10 values. But friends, status and
independence are. Ask the same person when they are
35 years old, happily married with children and you will
likely find two of their top ten values will include their
marriage and children.
You will also find your values can easily change based
on the circumstances. For example, if you are not feeling
physically well, how much you value your health can’t
help but increase. Or if your job is in jeopardy, you might
find how much you value money and security moves up
the ladder.
As you can see when your goals and values are not
in line they cause mixed emotions. And these conflicts
can create difficulties in making the best choices as well
as exhaustion. Yet if your goals and values are in line,
supporting each other, positive emotions are triggered.
This simplifies and clarifies things at the very least.
The following is a list of the top 25 values that I have
recognized by querying my class participants and in
working one to one with clients. They are by no means
expected to be your top 25 values and they are in no
particular order. Take as much time as you need to
determine your top 10 values and your least important values.
Tip: If you have difficulty organizing them, try starting with
a few. Put them in order, pick another, insert it the hierarchy
where you feel it belongs. Continue, until complete.
______ Religion /Spirituality
______ Comfort
______ Advancement
______ independence
______ Achievement
______ Education
______ Creativity
______ Affiliations
______ Old age
______ Travel
______ Contribution/Charity
______ Long Life
______ Meaningful job/Career
______ Friendships
______ Status
______ Health
______ Security
______ Family
______ Marriage/Significant other
______ Happiness
______ Variety
______ Recognition
______ Wealth/Money
______ Free time
______ Sports/Athletics
______ Other ________________
______ Other ________________
About The Author
Kimberly Goodwin of Achievement Architect is an achievement consultant, speaker, and author.
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