What matters to you as a professional and individual? What are the things that give you energy and engage you? Identifying your values, and finding alignment between values and what you do, leads to feelings of fulfillment, engagement, positivity, and energy.
Think about a positive experience you had while working on a project (professional, personal, volunteer, etc.). While participating, how did you feel physically, emotionally, intellectually? How did you feel when it was complete? People describe these experiences as motivating, rewarding, and compelling. They describe feeling accomplished, proud, and capable.
Engagement in one aspect of your life creates positive emotions and drive for you as a whole. For example, participating in the volunteer work that you love and get energy from, can lead to positive feelings at work, home, and other areas of your life.
3 Steps to find ways to incorporate more of what matters to you in your daily life.
Step 1 – Identify what’s important to you
First, think about a great experience you had. What were you doing? How did you feel? Who were you with? What values were being met at that time?
Now, name what’s important and meaningful to you. Include the values you identified in Step 1 and add to the list. (The values below are examples to consider.)
Some examples of values:
Achievement, Adventure, Collaboration, Compassion, Contribution, Courage, Creativity, Decision Making, Equality, Family, Financial Security, Friendships Fun, Health, Helping Others, Humility, Independence, Influencing Others, Interpersonal Relationships, Innovation, Integrity, Justice, Knowledge, Leadership, Learning, Mastery, Nature, Physical Activity, Recognition, Self-Acceptance, Self-Expression, Service, Social Change, Spirituality, Stability, Teamwork
Next, choose your top 10 values and then rank them from most important to less important.
Step 2 – Analyze
Where are your top values being met in your life? Which values are not being met to a degree you are happy with?
Step 3 - Take Action
Identify where can you do more and experience more of your values at work, home, volunteer work, community, etc. and plan to take action. Start with one value.
Example: If a top value is interpersonal relationships and you are not satisfied in this, consider how to increase your interpersonal relationships.
If work feels “all business”, start connecting with coworkers on a personal basis. Perhaps this means a virtual coffee with a peer, a 30-minute non-business meeting with your team members, or taking 5 minutes of the team meeting to ask (and listen) to how everybody is doing.
Personal connections need to be leveled up? Reach out to old and new friends, family, or acquaintances by phone, email, text, or social media. Choose 1-2 people to start with and go from there. Set a goal for yourself about how many people or reach-outs you’ll make per week.
Repeat Steps 2 and 3 to get more of what you value in your daily life and to experience the resulting positive effects.
This 3-step exercise can be used to incrementally help shift your engagement and energy in meaningful ways by identifying what matters to you, clarifying what you want to experience more of, and making plans and taking action to experience what you value.