When you want to explore your career: 5 tactics to discover your values
As we head into the end of the year, many of us are using this time to rest, enjoy family and friends, attend holiday events, and take stock. Some of us made job or career changes this year; others will do the same next year.
I have written about what to keep in mind as you approach this somewhat daunting task of thinking about your career direction. There seems to be a debate in other blogs and articles about what should drive your career choice. Some say follow your passion. Some say passion is ridiculous; find something to support yourself financially. At the same time, other authors declare that you can have both.
I think this is the wrong direction entirely. Of course, it is helpful to know your "passion," but as I have written before, our job should not be the only thing in our lives that fill us up and fuels that passion. To have passion isn't about a single thing. I would prefer to have passion for life and fill my life with those things that embody what matters to me.
For the next four weeks, I will present four facets in depth that we should ask ourselves and reflect on when we think about our careers: Values, Strengths, Energy, and Belief. Today, we will talk about values.
Values have come up a lot these days as life and work keep changing at an alarming rate. What mattered in 2019 may not matter today; the opposite can also be true. As leaders struggle to balance what people want and what they feel an organization needs to survive and thrive, values are central to this conversation.
For me, making an impact has always mattered, but this has become even more acute in these times as I can't always see if what I am doing has an effect. When I was going through massive personal change, stability and security mattered a lot to me seven years ago. Now? Those values are not at the top of my list as I get more comfortable with ambiguity and taking risks to achieve my goals.
Values are the most critical component when thinking about our careers. We should all seek to understand if our values align with the organization, our boss, and our job responsibilities. If you are in business for yourself, ensuring your mission, value proposition, and how you work with customers or clients needs to be in alignment.
To live or work out of alignment with your values will create conflict that will force you to be stressed, angry, sad, depressed, or just grumpy. You won't be productive or motivated. It is nearly impossible to live in harmony and feel good about ourselves if we live in conflict. I have lived this way in a personal relationship and a working relationship. Both had to end to ensure I could function and be myself.
I worked for a start-up for a bit when I was right out of college. It was a fast, entrepreneurial, free-flowing, a kind of "making it up as we went" experience. It was a little too loose as the organization didn't make it past six months. I may have had fun outside of work with my colleagues, but I was not aligned in the position. There was no concrete business plan, no desire to set up processes, no focus, no real vision people could get behind, and minimal trust and respect. All of these things mattered more to me than having a foosball table in the conference room. My values were not in sync, and neither was my job satisfaction.
Whether you’ve had a specific situation like the above or not, you know what being out of alignment feels like. Sometimes you can't identify why something feels wrong or why you are so de-motivated in a particular task or project. If this is the case, chances are the environment, people, or work don't sync with your values — what you hold dear.
Here are five things I highly recommend you do to understand your values; this will only help you in your future career decisions.
Journal.
Journaling is the single best action to get to know yourself better. I recommend people take a month and write down every week, or more frequently if you can't remember every day like me, what situations, environments, people, and work synced with you and conversely what didn't quite fit. It is important to record details and write down why you think it does or doesn't fit. Don't worry about identifying values quite yet, but certainly record them if something leaps out at you. Divide your journal page into a Fit and Doesn't Fit column and record your thoughts for one month under each heading.
Reflect.
After a month, read what you have written and try to pull out themes. I am sure you will see some patterns emerge. When I did this activity a few years ago, I noticed time and time again that autonomy came up for me. I felt at my best when I was given some room to run. I felt constricted when I frequently reported to someone else on specific projects. It may take you a few times to read your thoughts and pull out these patterns. Be sure to write down the values or actions that recur in your notes.
Make a values list.
I recommend making a list of values that matter to you based on your reflection. What motivated you the most? When missing, what caused you significant stress or angst? Trustworthiness? Stability? Freedom? Autonomy? Creativity? Structure? Fairness? Innovation? Predictability? Speed? Honesty? If you need a list to pick from, there are many out there in the Internet universe. Search for "values list." Most of them have about 200 values for you to pick from. That may seem daunting but do your best to pick your top ten values. I know that it's difficult but force yourself to choose only ten. This will help you prioritize your current work or future career path.
Take an assessment.
If you're still unsure of your values from the activity above, take an assessment. Again, the internet universe is full of them. Search for "personal values assessment," and you will see many free ones. If you work for a mid-size or larger organization, they may have an assessment you can take. Local colleges and universities or libraries may also have access to them. Generally, they turn out to be pretty accurate. Keep in mind that these are not personality assessments. Those are also helpful but tell you more about how you act and lead in situations than what you value.
Stay vigilant.
With all of this recorded, stay watchful about how situations, people, and work line up going forward. When something doesn't fit or feel right, pull out your values list and ask yourself if one of those is being challenged. When you interview for a new job or are looking to pursue a new career path, look at your top ten values and be sure to ask questions to see if the organization or opportunity aligns with those values. If not, walk away. Your values are critical to your well-being and living in harmony, not conflict.
I genuinely believe we don't spend enough time contemplating and consciously evaluating if we are living within our value system. These are at our core and, when compromised, can create stress, angst, burnout, or worse. When you know your values, you can judge any new job or current project aptly to see if it fits you.
Spend some time over the next few months to record your situations and thoughts. Write down your values or find a list that works for you. Prioritize the values you would feel lost without and seek work and opportunities that shore up your values.