Values Worksheet. What are Values?

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Values Worksheet

What are Values?

Values are the pillars around which we make our choices and understand our place in the world.

They are beliefs we hold that motivate us to act and make meaning in a particular way.

Some values are shared in a family, community, or cultural group, while other values are deeply personal to us.

Consider the following scenario:

Maya has had a long day at work and gets home just in time to kiss her 4 young children goodnight. Her partner arrives home a few minutes after her, both of them exhausted. The babysitter, 18 year-old Aliya, will have to take a late bus home, and their’s is not the safest neighborhood at night. It is poorly lit, and since it’s Friday night there are often groups of young people out looking for trouble. It’s a 20-minute walk to her bus stop, or a 2-minute drive from their home.

Imagine the variety of choices that could be made in this case if Maya and her partner share the following values.

Fill in the blanks with your ideas.

(There are no “right” or “wrong” answers to the statements below.)

If safety was their core value, they might __________________________________________________.

If independence and grit were their core values they might ____________________________________________________.

If generosity was their core value they might________________________________________________________________.

If self-care was their core value they might _________________________________________________________________.

If you were Maya and her partner, what decision(s) would you make in this scenario? _______________________________

What value(s) is this decision based on?______________________________________________________

Where Do we Get Our Values?

• Some of us develop our values through knowledge passed down from earlier generations in our families.

• Some of us develop our values through the mentorship of those we trust and respect.

• Some of us develop our values through life experiences that wake us up to what we stand for.

• Most of us develop our values through a combination of the above.

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Watch the following video.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sASjfNI_lD0

Identify the order that you might prioritize the 7 values/teachings taught by Elder Dave Courchene of the AnishinaabeFirst Nation (while remembering that all seven of these teachings work together.)

1 _________________________________

2 _________________________________

3 _________________________________

4 _________________________________

5 _________________________________

6 _________________________________

7 _________________________________

Notice the first value you listed above and the associated animal below.

Buffalo: Respect Eagle: Love Bear: Courage Big Foot: Honesty Beaver: Wisdom Wolf: Humility Turtle: Truth

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Watch this next video from 3:00 – 11:00 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZmtOGXreTOU

While watching the video, list the values Reverend Dr. Martin Luther King explores.

How do you feel after watching this video?

Record thoughts, feelings, insights.

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Identifying your Core values

Your core values are the compass inside that directs your attention and influences your choices. There are many ways to get to your core values, and Peace Intimi (YouTuber) has suggested the following six part process.

1. Get settled in a private, quiet place with no distractions.

Use your pen and journal or a device, whichever you find easiest.

2. Write down ALL the words that come to you when you think of your values.

(This should be a LONG list of 30-100 words.)

_____________________ ______________________ ______________________

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3. Group similar words into categories, and pick a word that describes each category.

_____________________ ______________________ ___________________

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_____________________ ______________________ ___________________

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4. Pick your most personally important values and write them below.