Doing “Values Work” is Super Valuable!

As the spring flowers are blooming in Madison, I’m also emerging from a winter season that was spent going inward working on the foundational aspects of this new and developing coaching practice.

I recently completed a series of sessions with Maggie Red, values-aligned business planning coach & consultant. With a background working in public service, becoming a business owner has been a stretch out of my comfort zone. Having support in this transition  has been extremely beneficial for me. I now work from a place that is more centered, grounded, and confident.

We began this process by working through an assessment, narrowing down and defining my top five business values. By identifying values for which I operate, this has helped me move to a place where I can confidently lead the business from an authentic place and give to the world in a way that matters.

Here are my top five values and some questions for reflection …

JOY: Expansion. Lightness. Brightness. Warmth. Light. Joyful productivity. Practicing joy showing up for clients.

What brings joy to your daily work? What does it look like to cultivate joy with others?

INCLUSIVITY: Wholeness. Connection. Common humanity. All are welcome here. Inviting in differences. Recognizing that systems in our world have been built with a history of exclusion and exclusivity.

How can we create spaces that include rather than exclude? How can you connect with others in a way to bring forth greater equanimity?

INTUITION: Guided by an inner knowing. Tuning into the inner voice. Intentionally listening in and speaking from this true and authentic place.

How can you support others to open up to their intuition for guidance? How can you listen in more deeply and be open to this intuitive knowing?

PURPOSE: The bigger why. Operating at an individual level that benefits the collective.

Are you working from a place of purpose, and intention with daily tasks and decisions? How can we stay grounded in the larger purpose and not get lost in the minutia?

GROWTH: Curiosity. Ever-evolving. Approaching new things with a beginner’s mind. The earth’s natural cycles.

What is your growth edge? How can we see potential in others and foster their growth and learning?

After going through this process, it is exciting that I now feel these values deeply in my body, in my bones. During times that I feel more scattered or overwhelmed, these values are posted on my wall, and have become a place that I can look to for direction, as a compass on where to focus my energy next.

I have also now been incorporating values work with clients, especially for those who are in a time of transition looking for direction during times of big life changes. The process of going through this work can be clarifying, enlightening, and really fun!!!

Can you tell I like values work?  If you’re interested in diving into your own work around values, I’d love to talk!