As a reminder, this series is about how we self-inflict pain into our lives by the way we think in our minds. If you missed the previous articles, feel free to check out previous ones!

If you’ve been reading this series, you’ve probably noticed I’ve spent a lot of time working on helping you build awareness by discussing various mind hacks.

Hence the previous articles are about things like becoming an observer of the mind, recognizing things like your inner critic, your drifting off into “what if” world, when you are listening to the voice of truth vs. lies, and cognitive distortions.

For the remaining articles in this series, I am shifting gears and talking about healthy ways to deal with some of these unhelpful ways of thinking we have in our minds.

Today’s topic is learning about PERSONAL CORE VALUES.

I think of personal core values as our most important beliefs about self, specifically about how we desire to show up as people in the world around us. They can be simple, one sentence descriptions of what kind of man or woman you hope to be in some area of life.

Here are some examples:

“I am a man who loves his family by leading my family spiritually.”

“I am a woman who is passionate about being her authentic self.”

“I am a man who is creative and expresses himself through art such as through singing and acting.”

“I am a woman who loves herself enough to take good care of her physical health through healthy nutrition and regular exercise.”

Writing out personal core values can be helpful because it’s an opportunity to write out who you believe God made you to be.

And if you’re not sure where to start, you can think of areas of struggle.

For example…

Do you struggle with spending too much money?

An appropriate personal core value might be something like “I’m a person who is a careful steward of finances, keeping a budget and using wisdom in how I spend money.”

Do you struggle with being too busy and feeling overwhelmed?

Maybe a helpful personal core value may be something like “I make sure to make time to take care of myself spiritually, mentally, and physically so that I can show up as the best version of me.”

Do you struggle with eating too much sugar and not enough vegetables?

Maybe a helpful personal core value may be something like “I’m a person who seeks to have a healthy, balanced diet and is cautious about my sugar intake.”

In other words, our very own areas of struggle can point us to the very areas where we may need to write out some personal core values.

And this is a mind hack because when we put into words what is in our mind and then seek to act on it, we are lining up who we say we are with the choices we make in real life. And when we do saw, we can walk with a sense of integrity.

Before I conclude, it’s important to remember that a personal core value is only as useful as you make it.

If you write down a personal core value and never act on it, that’s like having a compass you never use.

On the other hand, if you write down a personal core value and you act on it, then you reinforce the identity you seek to embody in life.

So, if you use this mind hack, make sure you use it consistently.

So WHAT ABOUT YOU?

Do you know what your personal core values are?

(if not, looking at areas of struggle can give you a clue on where you need to write some down)

If so, have you ever taken time to write them down or remember them in some way?

Let’s THRIVE in mind so we can THRIVE in life!