Value Clarification Exercises

Copyright © Donald Robertson, 2011.  All rights reserved.

These questions are designed to help you clarify your personal values and to consider how they could be more fully integrated in your life at present.

1. Personal Role-Models: Who do you admire?

Brainstorm a list of people you admire, including as many as possible.  What admirable characteristics do they have in common with each other?

Write a eulogy or obituary for one of the people you admire, focusing on their strengths and achievements.  What values does their life embody?  What do you really admire most about them?  In what ways might you want to resemble the people you admire most?

2. Retrospective Achievements: Looking Back on Things

Looking back on your life so far, what things are you most proud of achieving?  What does that tell you about your values?

Write your own ideal eulogy or obituary, focusing on the things you’d like to be remembered for.  What values would you want your life to embody?

3. Prospective Goals: Looking Forward

What are your current goals in life?  Which are the highest priority?

What is it that makes them so important to you?  What fundamental personal values do these goals embody?

4. Summary & Conclusion

In summary, with the above in mind, what are your core values?  Which three are most important to you?

Now rate yourself (0-100%) in terms of how well you’ve recently been living according to those three primary values.  What proportion of your time is spent fulfilling your core values?

For each core value, why exactly did you score yourself above 0% (if you did)?  What specific evidence is there that you have been living according to that value?

For each one, how exactly could you score closer to 100% (if not already)?  What general strategies and specific tactics could you employ to incorporate and fulfil that value more completely in your life?

What would be the very first step that you should take in order to begin living more fully in accord with your core values?  How soon could you take it?