Getting Lost In The Woods

Many years ago I had the great pleasure of spending time backpacking along the Appalachian Trail. These were happy times when I could spend a weekend walking and living in the peace and quiet of the woods. Sometimes I would get lost or turned around on these trips. It occurred to me today that those walks in the woods taught me a valuable lesson that I will use to distinguish between values and principles.

I received a comment to yesterday’s message (we all need to be brave and post our comments on the site) that raised a very important point about values. The comment was that sometimes our values are constantly changing because of external influences such as friends, politics, or even religion. Because of this sometimes we shy away from those that have values that are in conflict with our own. However, at times these same influences are strong enough to change our values. So then, how can we have values that don’t change? This brings us back to my days on the Appalachian Trail.

When I went hiking I always carried two things for guidance. The first was a Guide to Trails which included a map and description of the trail I was hiking on. The second was a compass. The trail guide with included maps is the equivalent of our values. Our values provide a description or map of what we believe. This description is very useful, but a map is only a subjective description of what it stands for. If two people drew a map of the same place, or held the same values, the maps and the values would be slightly or dramatically different. A compass however is not subjective. North on a compass is based on a principle called Magnetic North. The magnetic needle on a compass will always point to magnetic north no matter which way you turn (externally influence). The direction of the compass is unchanging, principle centered direction.

As we end our discussion this week on Values, think in terms of a compass not just a map. Base your values on principles such as integrity, honesty, or trust. This results in values that will not change with the influences of society, friends, or the latest fad. Here is my simple formula for writing your values. Spend a little time on this over the weekend. For every value there must be a principle upon which it is based. For example: If the Principle is Trust, then the Value could be – I will always speak as though the people I am talking about can hear my every word. Now with that as a value, live accordingly.

Next week we begin with a discussion on “Objectives” the “O” in finding your V.O.I.C.E.

Please comment and I encourage you to refer this site to your friends, and colleagues.