Guide
What are core values?
Your core values are the few things that matter most to you in how you live. A value describes a direction you want to keep moving in, at work, at home and everywhere else.
What a value is
A value says how you want to live and what you want to stand for. Your core values are the handful you would keep if you had to let go of all the others.
Values and goals
You can reach a goal and tick it off. A value you keep living, and you are never done with it. A goal can serve a value: when you reach the goal, the value is still there and points you to the next one.
| Goal | Value |
|---|---|
| Run a marathon | Look after my body |
| Get the promotion | Do work I can stand behind |
| Be home on time tonight | Be there for my family |
Values apply in every part of life
Your values run through every part of your life. If fairness matters to you, it matters at work as much as in sport or with your family.
A value describes your ideal
A value says how things would be at their best. Nobody lives their values perfectly, and that is not the point of having them. A value is also something you choose. A strength is something you happen to be good at. A value is something you decide to aim for.
Toward and away
Every decision moves you toward one of your values or away from it. What you push away tells you something too: if dishonesty repels you, that often points straight back at a value you care about, such as honesty. That is why the test has an optional step on anti-values, the things you dislike most.
Examples of core values
Ten of the 80 values in the test, each with its short definition:
- FreedomSelf-Direction
- Speaking, acting and pursuing happiness without unnecessary external restrictions.
- CuriositySelf-Direction
- Desire to experience or learn something new.
- CourageStimulation
- Ability to do something that frightens you.
- FairnessUniversalism
- Treating others justly and behaving impartially.
- HonestyBenevolence
- Adherence to the truth.
- FriendshipBenevolence
- Relationships between people who like and enjoy each other’s company.
- FamilySecurity
- Giving importance to family as a group of people with a common bond of love, loyalty and care.
- BalanceSecurity
- Achieving equilibrium by making time for things that matter.
- AchievementAchievement
- Successfully reaching a goal with effort, skill, or courage.
- FunPleasure
- Enjoying pleasant activities in the here and now.
How to find your core values
This exercise follows the six steps of the test. You can do it on paper, or let the test walk you through it.
Pick what is important to you
Go through a list of values and keep the ones that matter to you. Aim for seven to ten, and add any that are missing.
Make them yours
Merge values that mean the same to you and give each group a name in your own words. Write down what each one means to you.
Rank them in pairs
Take two values at a time and ask: which is more important to me? Do this for every pair, and go with your first instinct.
Check the list
Read the list from the top. Does it feel right? Move values up or down until it does.
Look at what you dislike
Optional: name the things you most want to keep out of your life. They often point back at a value.
Rate how much room each value gets
For each value, rate how much room it gets in your life right now, from barely any to as much as you want. A value high on your list with barely any room is worth a closer look.
Questions about core values
How many core values does a person have?
There is no fixed number. For working with them, a short list helps: the test ends with three to nine values and aims for seven.
Can core values change?
Yes. Treat your list as a snapshot worth revisiting. The order is approximate and depends on your situation.
Are there right or wrong values?
No. There are no right or wrong values. The test shows what you chose and in which order. It does not judge or score the result.
What is the difference between personal and company core values?
Personal core values are about how you want to live. Company core values describe how an organization wants to work. This guide and the test are about personal values.
What is a value conflict?
Two values that matter to you can ask for different things in one decision, for example freedom and family. The report of the test shows up to three pairs of your values that sit on opposite sides of Schwartz's value circle.
