COURAGE.

Courage requires a step outside of your comfort zone. You might, for example, feel disinclined to offer a genuine apology out of fear that the other will reject it. But courage will help you apologise anyway because it’s the right thing to do, out of respect for the one you hurt or might have offended. Whether they accept your apology or not is their business.

KINDNESS.

Kindness to yourself is also vital, and it is the basis for self-care. Don’t forget to be as kind to yourself as you want others to be. And through the act of practising kindness to yourself, you also make yourself better able to render kindness to others. My personal experience is that it brings delight in lifting others up and reminding them they’re not alone, invisible, or insignificant.

PATIENCE.

When someone is pushing your buttons, taking your time or attention away from something you want to finish, or making your life harder in some way, you can practice patience by putting yourself in the others’ shoes. It helps when we see the situation from their perspective and then respond with kindness and respect. No one wants to be treated like an inconvenience or a burden, and sometimes your priorities have to change to make room for something (or someone) more important or more likely to help you grow.

INTEGRITY.

Integrity is about acting and speaking in accordance with your beliefs. Ultimately, we must walk the talk.

GRATITUDE / APPRECIATION.

Showing appreciation to others for their words and actions is also essential to making this a core value. Just as you appreciate it when others thank you for a job well done, for a thoughtful gift, or for giving them the help they needed, others appreciate that recognition too. When gratitude is a core belief, you make time for it every day. You prioritise both feeling gratitude and expressing it — in your thoughts, in the words you speak or write, and in your attitude and actions.

FORGIVENESS.

Everyone has a capacity for forgiveness — just as everyone can hurt others with their words and actions — but not everyone has cultivated a habit of forgiveness. Forgiveness is about letting go of anger and resentment toward those who have hurt or offended you.

GROWTH.

If growth is one of your core values, you look for opportunities to grow as a person and to help others succeed, too. You know that growth isn’t a desti-nation but a process, and you want to enjoy that process and help others enjoy theirs. You take the time to identify your values and your overall mis-sion, so you can live according to it and become more and more the person you must be to fulfil your life’s mission.

LISTENING.

If active listening is a core value for you, you value others’ input and invest time and energy in learning how to see things from their perspectives. You recognise that you don’t know everything, and you don’t see even familiar things from every angle, so you appreciate it when others share their perspectives. And your body language, as well as your feedback, shows them you’re listening and that you care about what they have to say. Ultimately, good listeners always strive to fully understand what others are trying to communicate to them.

RESPECT.

If you want to be known for treating all human (or living) beings with respect, you probably base that respect on something more fundamental than someone’s rank or social status.

VISION.

Your personal vision – what you see as your response to the larger picture — helps create your mission and the processes by which you live out that mission. It’s not about the lifestyle you want or the things you’ll have when you’re “successful”. It is about allowing yourself to live your life following your vision. We can do this through our intuition and inner wisdom.

AUTHENTICITY.

Authenticity is being truthful about who you are. It means speaking your truth, openly and honestly — not hiding for fear of criticism or judgment. There is freedom in recognising that.

BALANCE.

It’s not easy to balance work, relationships, and self-care. You must also take note of how much time you’ve invested in your relationships. But you know from experience how important it is to do so. So, you take note of where you are on your priority list when you review your actions for the day.

COMMUNITY.

You value their safety and well-being and have goodwill toward them. And whether you have an active and visible presence in the community or you prefer to work behind the scenes, you make it a priority to ensure your community is stronger and more united than you found it.

CREATIVITY.

You are a creator. As such, you have both the potential and the innate drive to create things that make lives better. You don’t wait for the day to bring you something new; you take what you have and create something. And being a social creature, you take pleasure in making things you know other people will enjoy.

GENEROSITY.

You know generosity is about more than donating money or spending a bit more to support a worthy cause. A truly generous spirit is also quick to share intangible blessings: kindness, patience, goodwill, understanding, and forgiveness. One of the most extraordinary acts of all is giving our time to others when they need it most. Otherwise, what’s the point of having more than enough?

JUSTICE.

Justice — to be worthy of the name — must apply equally to all people, regardless of their race, income, or age. Whatever you do, it’s not to score points or to be seen as doing good. You do this to look these fellow human beings in the eye and let them know you see them and want what they want because they have as much right to justice as anyone else.

LEARNING.

I am a big believer in the value of always learning. And I love to find connections between seemingly disparate ideas and disciplines. The more we learn, the more we realise how little we all know and how much more there is to learn, which excites me greatly. I know I will never run out of things to learn. And it will never get boring.

FREEDOM.

Viktor Frankl called the last of human freedoms the freedom “to choose one’s attitude in any given set of circumstances.” You choose how to feel about something, just as you choose how to act. That inner freedom is what you value more than any flag or statue, or anthem because no one can take that away from you. It is perfectly understandable to cherish the outward freedoms you enjoy. But if you were to lose them, you would not lose yourself and would always remain free in your thoughts.

LOYALTY.

Loyalty implies a connection or implicit agreement between two or more people. When you’re loyal to someone, they hold a special place in your life. Similarly, other people’s loyalty or lack of loyalty toward you has implications and consequences.

OPENNESS.

You’re open to new people and new experiences. You know there’s always more to learn. It’s not that you necessarily crave novelty, but you want to be open to considering different viewpoints, perspectives, and ideas.

PRUDENCE.

Prudence is the ultimate superpower. Generally speaking, prudence is doing or saying the right thing at the right time and in the right way. Prudence is looking at the bigger picture and the more profound consequences of your words and actions. You value prudence because, much as you want to do something, you know sometimes the situation calls for patience and circumspection.

RESILIENCE.

Resilience is the ability to recover from and adapt to change or misfortune. In other words, when things go wrong, you find a way to pivot and keep moving forward. Life knocks you down, and you get back up each and every time. Life plays out a moment to moment. And the more you respond to knock-downs by getting back up, the more automatic it becomes.

RESPONSIBILITY.

You take responsibility for your words and actions and how they impact your life and the lives of others. On the other hand, you do not take responsibil-ity for the way others feel about you.

SELF-RESPECT.

You know the value of self-respect because you’ve seen the consequences for those who have none. Self-care is key to creating balance in your life. When you prioritise self-respect, other things tend to fall into place. You deserve to be cared for as much as anyone else.

SPIRITUALITY.

Spirituality is the harmonious life of a person's bodily and mental state. A spiritual person is always open to good deeds.

WISDOM.

Wisdom is the ability to apply what you know (knowledge) — along with your intelligence — to make the right choices. Wisdom can guide you to make better use of everything you have, including your money, talents, skills, and time.