Identifying Your Values
Once your natural areas of strengths are identified (using the Clifton Strengths Finder) you need to find particular areas to focus those strengths upon to leverage your strengths and create valuable, rare and quality output. The most fundamental work in this regard is finding what is your value system and how does it align with a particular output of creative strength.
Values are often derived from societal and family influences and with areas of activity where you have been valued and been regarded highly by your peers and parents for your accomplishments. Underlying this is our need for belonging, which shapes our value system so that we ‘fit-in’ within the social context we were born into and areas of activity which our need for belonging and recognition were positively reinforced.
Within an environment which provided secure attachment and authentic encouragement for innate areas of talent, identifying these areas of strengths can be easy. But when you are born into dysfunction which has resulted in insecure attachment styles developing then identifying areas of strength can be considerably more difficult.
Values are often derived from societal and family influences and with areas of activity where you have been valued and been regarded highly by your peers and parents for your accomplishments. Underlying this is our need for belonging, which shapes our value system so that we ‘fit-in’ within the social context we were born into and areas of activity which our need for belonging and recognition were positively reinforced.
Within an environment which provided secure attachment and authentic encouragement for innate areas of talent, identifying these areas of strengths can be easy. But when you are born into dysfunction which has resulted in insecure attachment styles developing then identifying areas of strength can be considerably more difficult.
Creating a Mission Statement:
Your mission is how you want to show up in the world and use your strengths in ways that add value to people’s life’s, mitigate some of the suffering of others and provides for a sense of self-fulfilment through making a worthwhile contribution within the world. Your mission is an area you want to express yourself and provide value to the world aligned to your value framework.
Your mission guides you as you make plans to improve an aspect of your life. A mission statement focuses attention on who you want to be. Your mission becomes a source of inspiration and commitment to your future. It provides meaning to every task you want to accomplish and becomes the driving force behind your goals. A mission statement articulates the big idea of who you are and what you are working towards as a goal. It expresses how you wish to be known and the legacy you want to share with others.
Your mission reflects your dream; it is a picture of the future you would like to create. It should be concise and easy to remember. Gordon D’Angelo, author of Vision: Your Pathway to Victory, describes a mission statement as “the definable intention from which preparation is formed.” Jennell Evans, CEO of Strategic Interactions, defines a mission as an “optimal desired future state – the mental picture – of what an organization [or individual] wants to achieve over time.”
Consider these questions as you compose a meaningful vision statement:
As you consider a personal mission statement, Stephen Covey, author of The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People, suggested, “Begin with the end in mind.” It is composed in present tense and summarizes how you plan to execute your vision.
A mission should:
To get an idea, have a look at Mission statements of some of the CEOs across the world:
Your mission guides you as you make plans to improve an aspect of your life. A mission statement focuses attention on who you want to be. Your mission becomes a source of inspiration and commitment to your future. It provides meaning to every task you want to accomplish and becomes the driving force behind your goals. A mission statement articulates the big idea of who you are and what you are working towards as a goal. It expresses how you wish to be known and the legacy you want to share with others.
Your mission reflects your dream; it is a picture of the future you would like to create. It should be concise and easy to remember. Gordon D’Angelo, author of Vision: Your Pathway to Victory, describes a mission statement as “the definable intention from which preparation is formed.” Jennell Evans, CEO of Strategic Interactions, defines a mission as an “optimal desired future state – the mental picture – of what an organization [or individual] wants to achieve over time.”
Consider these questions as you compose a meaningful vision statement:
- What are your most notable past achievements?
- How do you want to be remembered?
- What values do you want to cultivate?
- What can I do that adds value to my life and value to the lives of others?
- What are my talents?
As you consider a personal mission statement, Stephen Covey, author of The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People, suggested, “Begin with the end in mind.” It is composed in present tense and summarizes how you plan to execute your vision.
A mission should:
- Serve a purpose higher than yourself
- Align with your natural strengths.
- Be aligned with an area of output you can leverage and scale to reach more people.
To get an idea, have a look at Mission statements of some of the CEOs across the world:
- To serve as a leader, live a balanced life, and apply ethical principles to make a significant difference.” – Denise Morrison, CEO of Campbell Soup Company.
- “I define personal success as being consistent to my own personal mission statement: to love God and love others.” – Joel Manby, CEO of Herschend Family Entertainment.
- “To be a teacher. And to be known for inspiring my students to be more than they thought they could be.” - Oprah Winfrey, Founder of OWN, the Oprah Winfrey Network.
- “To have fun in [my] journey through life and learn from [my] mistakes.” - Sir Richard Branson, Founder of the Virgin Group
- Your mission should align with your values. It becomes a filter through which you choose your words, thoughts, and behaviour. Personal mission statements are the compass that guide decisions.
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