Values

A value is a belief, or a philosophy that is important for us. Values can range from love, Respect, Integrity, and Teaching by Example. Whether we know we have of them or not, every person has a set of personal values. Most of us learned our values at home, at school or at church. But, do we know where are our children learning their values, from teachers at school, church, us the parents' Often our kids today are most influenced by what they see/hear on TV or outside on the street. Without values or beliefs, we would be like robots, going here and there by the situations of life. In this inhuman existence, there would be little consideration for truths we hold dear, let alone implement them to ennoble and enrich our lives. In this reality devoid of values, we would live unconscious lives, without meaning or purpose. On the other hand, when we take to values, we live a purposeful and dynamic existence. We can energize our lives by making the full effort to implement the values we subscribe to. Once we identify values that are meaningful to us, we can develop strategies to implement them. When we make the determined effort to implement those strategies, good fortune is sure to follow -- in the form of new opportunities, new sources of revenue and income, and other forms of material and psychological benefit. We may even notice that as we implement values, we experiences instances of "life response" -- where good fortune suddenly comes to us from seemingly out of nowhere, defying our normal perceptions of what is logical and possible. Each of us is motivated to move our lives in certain directions. That motivation is determined by the values we believe to. Our values are thus the formations and ideations of thought, the distinct formulations of understanding that express what we perceive to be important truths about life. These ideals are then reinforced by our emotions and feelings, which turn those mental perception into a vital passion that we hope to realize in our lives. Whether we actually make the effort to implement them is another matter. The last twenty-five years has seen an explosion in an interest in values. Tom Peters' book 'In Search of Excellence' started the ball rolling for values in the workplace. Religious leaders speak of family values, nations speak of moral values, spiritual teachers speak of the highest values of gratitude, benevolence, and self-givingness; even self-surrender to the Divine. Values drive us, motivate us, move life, move us forward -- enabling progress even evolution. Values are what enable life to take the Next Step -- whether they drive our own individual lives in a positive direction; improve the economic, social, and cultural conditions of a nation; or move society forward in its never-ending ascending path of progress. Values are expressions of emotionalized truths that when implemented energize whatever they come in contact with, enabling the greatest positive results with the least effort in the shortest period of time -- whether it is for the individual, a collective, or society as a whole. Respect is a quality that must be carefully nurtured in relation to oneself and to others. Every individual has the capacity to treat oneself and all those in his/her environment with kindness and dignity. The world would be a better place if all humans valued respect and lived that way in their daily lives. Teaching by Example is serving as a desirable model to others.