5 Life Coach Exercises: Discover Your Personal Values Happiness Guide

Your personal values are the beliefs you hold important in life. Understanding your personal values and letting them guide the decisions you make about your life can help you create a life that you love.

Think of your personal values as a compass that points you to your “true north”. It can be difficult to find your way without a compass, and understanding your values can reveal one of your greatest guides in life – you.

For many people, nothing immediately comes to mind when they ask themselves what their values are. Here are some life coaching exercises that can help you uncover the values that you can utilize day to day to create a life that you love.

Exercise 1: On Top of the World

Think of a time when you felt like life couldn’t get any better; perhaps it was one of the best days of your life. Write down a detailed description of this moment, then see what values you can recognise in your description. For example, if your peak moment was the day you and your friends decided to go skydiving, the personal values associated with that might be things like adventure and spontaneity.

Next, write what these values mean to you. For instance, perhaps you equate adventure with trying something new. This will help you get to the heart of what drives you and inspires you.

Exercise 2: Follow the Money Trail

Think about what you spend your money on after you have met your monthly expenses. Do you spend what’s left on improving your home, travelling, cars, clothing, art, charity, education or something else? Money is a limited resource for most people, which means they tend to use it in ways that match their values.

Write down the top five things you spend your extra pennies on, and next to each item on the list write down a personal value that corresponds to it. If you spend money going to yoga perhaps fitness, inner peace or spirituality are personal values to you. If you tend to save your money rather than spending it on something you want or enjoy, you might value security or prosperity.

Exercise 3: What Would You Like to Tell the World?

Take out a piece of paper, and imagine that you have just been given a free billboard on the main highway where you live. You must use the billboard to display a message that you would like to give to others. It must answer the question: “What would you like to say to the world?”. This should give you a good sense of what sort of values are most important to you. If your message goes along the lines of world peace, for instance, then your values may include serenity or teamwork.

Exercise 4: The Old Burning House Dilemma

Imagine that the place where you live catches on fire, and you only have time to save three objects. Assume that the people who live there and your pets are already safe. What three things would you choose to save? Why are these objects so much more important to you than everything else? What significance do they have to you beyond their monetary value? This exercise can help shed light on what you truly consider important, and these tie in strongly with your personal values. For example, saving something like a mobile phone shows that you value communication.

Exercise 5: Find Your Values by Looking to Others

Take out a piece of paper and write down the names of the three adults you admire the most. These might be people you know personally such as family members, or it could be famous people from the past or present that you adore. Next to each name on the list, write down what you consider to be that person’s top three qualities. Is there any overlap? This will highlight more of the values you deem most desirable in life.

Wondering how to fully embrace and live through the values you have uncovered? Learn how a life coach works to help people discover their best path in life with KlearMinds Life Coaching.