In a recent meeting with colleagues from a client organization, I was participating in a discussion that centered on how customers connect with the core values of this particular business enterprise in order to perceive the value proposition offered by this company as something unique, valuable and different from all other alternatives. As a result, I was reminded of how important our individual core values (what is most important to us) are at defining who we are as individuals and the value we bring to the world.
Just like business organizations, governments, and societies, individuals are defined in the world by what they value most. What is held sacred defines who you are (your identity, brand, persona), and what you do (choices, behaviors and results) in the physical world. Core values are sacred. This implies they are formed within you by your divine nature. They are not arbitrary ideas that form outside of you, solely the result of your conditioning. Your core values are the “holy of holies” of who and what you are in the physical world. Your core values seldom change with the whims of the outer world. Core values are the bedrock from which you perceive and build your life experiences. They are your spiritual DNA.
In my marketing and design practice, we help client organizations large and small craft a clear mental image of who they are and the value they create in the world. And because markets are dynamic and always changing, there is a tendency for some to adopt the popular values of conventional wisdom as a means of selling more stuff. It is rare for this strategy to succeed over time. This leads to sameness, mediocrity and slow death. The same holds true for individuals.
Core values are the magnetic north of your existence. They guide you in an ever-changing world. Rather than change with conventional wisdom, core values strengthen your awareness and understanding of your unique contributions to the world. You are lost and adrift in life without their guidance.
Of course, because life (like markets for goods and services) is a dynamic ever-changing force, sometimes we get turned around and disoriented in our approach and in our methods to create the success we desire. Sometimes we lose track, in the urgency of living (paying bills, raising kids, running businesses) of what is important–really important to us. When we are not living from our own inner creed, we experience all manner of dis-ease–that eventually shows up in our physical bodies.
When we connect deeply to what is important to us, we instantly and automatically sense greater potential for our lives. Our core values serve us in this way, illuminating and aligning our thoughts and actions in the direction of our heart’s desire. Our success becomes ever more grounded in that which is sacred only to us, and the value we bring to the world is but a reflection of our unique expression of divine nature.
My suggestion: make a habit of spending some portion of each day affirming what really matters to you.
