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The Navigator of Your Purpose Journey
Our values guide almost every decision we make. They shape the way we interact with other people. They define what we prioritize and think about. The bulk of our personal values were set at an early age, mostly by our parents. Over the years they will change slightly, but barring some tragic or life changing event, they stay with us for most of our lives. Like personal buoys, they become the chief navigator of our life’s journey. Pursuing our passion, our life mission, and our Purpose will all stay within the guardrails of our personal values.
Can a person have “bad” values? For something to be good or bad it must be compared to a standard. That standard dictates whether you, or our culture, says a value is good or bad.
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What Is Your Personal Standard?
What standard do you use for determining if a personal value is good or bad? Be careful how you answer this question. Is your standard based upon an undeniable, absolute truth or is it based upon feeling? Do you adopt the whims of a popular trend or do you standby what you know to be real and true? To what do you turn to as an arbiter in those gray areas? What you set as your standard for your personal values, your ethical and moral compass, will overshadow your life’s mission and Purpose. Choose wisely or you may find, to paraphrase Stephen Covey, the ladder you have been climbing is leaning against the wrong wall!
Society has established a standard of good and bad values. We see this played out in criminal courts every day. Society will also pressure an individual to conform and perhaps compromise their commitment to values based on absolute truth. I see this more evident today than at any time. Our culture’s value system becomes more and more based on the lowest common denominator rather than a higher authority. You have to decide whether your values will be based on conformity or integrity. That choice will determine the lasting significance of your Purpose.