This week we are talking about establishing your values as a way to achieve your goals. Goal setting is an important part of finding happiness and satisfaction in life. It helps us work on personal growth and accomplishing all we want in a concrete, manageable way. It can be hard to determine what one’s goals are, and that can make it difficult to even start working on your goals. That is where values come in.
Values are the stepping stones for goals.
What you want out of life and what will make you happy stems from the things you value. When you have clear values, your goals are then based off of what you need in your life in order to be living in line with that value. Today ask yourself, “what are my values and how do they fit into my current way of living?” If you don’t know, that’s ok, in this blog, we will talk about how to determine your values. Right now, the intention is just to start thinking about values and how they play into your life.
Sometimes struggling to set goals comes from not really valuing what we are working towards. It can be easy to tell ourselves something is important just because we think that’s what should be. Therefore, the first step to setting any goals is getting clear on what it is YOU actually value.
To start establishing your values, ask yourself the following questions:
- What in life matters to me the most? What are my highest priorities?
- What direction do I want my life to go in?
- What do I currently have in my life that I don’t want to lose?
- What things do I value but am missing from my life at this time?
- If I could work on a specific value but not tell anyone about it, would I still do it?
Once you know your values, you can start to set goals for yourself. Values are guideposts for our life. Without having clear values, it is difficult to find direction. To start establishing your values and accomplish your goals, think about how your life would look if you were operating in line with all that you value. In what ways do you feel your life’s already there? In what ways do you feel your values are lacking? Take this time to get clear on what you value and you might be surprised what doors that insight opens!
If you would like some more support, reach out to alyssa.mairanz@gmail.com and I will be in touch with next steps.
Alyssa Mairanz, LMHC, DBTC
Alyssa Mairanz provides counseling and therapy services for life transitions, relationship issues, self esteem, depression, anxiety, and DBT and Psychodynamic therapy in a NYC group practice in the Flatiron District near Madison Square Park. She also serves the Village, Chelsea, Union Square, the Financial District and the surrounding areas.
Empower Your Mind Therapy’s mission is to helps our clients build the life they want and find more happiness and satisfaction.
