What are my Values?
What are Values?
In Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT), a value is a deep belief or principle that guides your actions and decisions, like being honest, caring for others, or pursuing knowledge. Values are important because they give your life direction and meaning, helping you focus on what truly matters, even when things get tough. By living according to your values, you can make choices that lead to a more fulfilling and purposeful life, rather than just reacting to challenges or avoiding discomfort.
List of Values
Lists of values are important because they offer a broad range of ideas that can help you discover and clarify your own personal values. Seeing different values, like honesty, kindness, or creativity, can prompt you to reflect on what resonates most with you.
Here are a few lists:
Dr Russ Harris - Act Mindfully List of Values
Psychology Today 39 Core Values
Magic Wand Exercise
If we had a magic wand and got rid of your anxiety, shame, and insecurity, how would your life be different?
When you think about what you would wish for, you start to identify what truly matters to you—like relationships, health, or personal growth. These wishes reveal your core values, which are the guiding principles behind the kind of life you want to live.
Visualising the “Sweet Spot”
Imagining Your 80th Birthday
The Magical Bank Exercise
The following is taken from the Association for Contextual Behavior Science
Imagine that you had won the following prize in a contest: Each morning your bank would deposit $86,400.00 in your private account for your use. However, this prize has rules, just as any game has certain rules.The first set of rules: Everything that you didn't spend during each day would be taken away from you.You may not simply transfer money into some other account. You may only spend it.
The second set of rules: The bank can end the game without warning; at any time it can say, Its over, the game is over! It can close the account and you will not receive a new one.
What would you personally do?
You would buy anything and everything you wanted, right?
Not only for yourself, but for all people you love, right?
Even for people you don't know, because you couldn't possibly spend it all on yourself, right?
You would try to spend every cent, and use it all, right?
ACTUALLY, this GAME is REALITY! Each of us is in possession of such a magical bank. We just can't seem to see it. The MAGICAL BANK is TIME!
SO, what will YOU do with your 86,400 seconds?
Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) is available from our Geelong Psychologist. Contact us for more details or to make a referral.