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July 2009 
The Value of Values
Posted on Nov 11th, 2007
by 
Sherrilene
Sherrilene
How valuable do you consider your values to be?
These are the 'things' that keep you grounded, that keep you centred, on your path. As long as you do decide to stick to them.
There are days when the fact that you have strong principles and values feels like it's a challenge in this world. And particularly as an entrepreneur it does strike hard at times.
But the biggest of the challenges lies in faith; in keeping that big picture in thoughts. The picture that says: sticking closely to your goodness and decency will be worth it in the end. And the end is yet in sight.
Our society still appears to undervalue values. We can see the 'wonderfulness' of it; we admire and respect it, but we still so often hesitate to put significant tangible value to it, to actively demonstrate that we appreciate it.
At the risk of being negative, I must say that it's only a handful of persons that I know, who will think to compensate those persons who are trying to do good in this world. This is not a new story of course... look at what they did to Christ... but the question remains with me as to if we have not evolved as a species over 2,000 years ago...?
There is still a level of acceptance for the pursuit of materialism and feeding the capitalist corporate animal. We don't seem to hesitate to 'donate' our earned goods to the credit card company and the bank.
But the sources that give value, long-term value, are so usually a second thought; an after thought even; if thought of at all.
Should that mean that we withhold our contribution, our value from a world that currently can't receive it? No, the answer will hold closely that the end will be the best. And the returns on investing in principle and holistic value will reflect such giving too.
The same way that our individual needs run the gambit from the mental to the emotional to the spiritual to the physical, the rewards will be reflective across the many forms of You.
Learn to value all the blessings that do come that might not be physical or financial: the emotional sanctity and peacefulness, the mental and intellectual stimulation and growth and certainly the spiritual enrichment and enlightenment, and the feeling of being much closer to God, that comes from sticking to principle and standing for something right.
Value your values, good people.
Access: Public
What, no comments? What a sad commentary.
The person who first called my attention to the value and roles of values was Ayn Rand, novelist-philosopher (Atlas Shrugged her most famous book.) Then there was Paul Fussell's undervalued, humorous, poignant, classic book, Class, about how socioeconomic classes can be discerned and defined by the values held. Most recently, I have been studying Spiral Dynamics, a way of talking about , discerning, and working with stages in the evolution of consciousness in individuals and societies, based [in large part] on the values held. (Spiral Dynamics: Mastering Values, leadership, and change book by Don Beck and Christopher Cowan. )
The value of values has become part of the fabric of the way I look at the world. Thank you, sherri, for calling attention to this crucial aspect of social and individual life !!!!
Blessings, OM Bastet
Hi ladies, thank you for finally commenting. Yes, it's been a strange ride for me to see how many people read the blog but didn't have a single comment to add to it. But I am learning about different cultures and expression etc. in this whole process.
Trust me, I have been shocked by the persons who actually asked me to set my values aside and make some money; people you might never expect, given their public profile. But it was too offensive for me and I decided to pass on a number of 'lucrative' contracts because it just didn't sit well with me.
I don't consider myself naive; like I said, I've been around. It just wasn't satisfying to settle anymore. So I passed on some contracts, and others came. And there are actually some people who respect the standard that I set for myself and my company and those are the ones I get business from. It works great for the both of us.
The vast majority of images out there are scarcity driven; but Quality sets apart and always has. So this is quite sufficient for my particular purposes and for what I am attempting to achieve for myself and my own life.
I would love to see some more stories of stepping up and living to tell the tale, yes! There really is not enough out there on this in my opinion… I believe that Jesus and Joan of Arc are old and miserable examples to draw from. Man has evolved and continues to evolve upwards where such efforts don't have to conclude in some mortal fate!
Thank you for your feedback, I appreciate it.
sherri
Oh by the way, the photo was taken in South Africa by my fellow peaceful activist and best friend Tamara. Blessings.
I went to edit and wasn't paying attention and deleted!
The more I read about your company, the more I love it :)
I hope more people will share their stories, too…
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What a lovely first post - and image of the hands and water!
It's interesting to hear others talking about values (in my daily life, too). Do they tease or ridicule the person for having “too much” integrity or being “old-fashioned” or do they enjoy meeting others who live their lives according to their values and authenticity? People can reveal a lot about their present nature by their offhand daily comments.
I have enjoyed both wonderful returns and suffering for holding on to my values.
One wonderful return for me was being given Atlas Shrugged at a dinner. Our vice president had been fired for refusing to compromise his ethics and then forced to publically resign. I wrote a letter to the board and the president of the organization about my observations of this event. Surprisingly, I wasn't fired, as well!
The president later met me in the hallway of our organization. She was a very powerful, charasmatic woman and I felt a little intimidated; regardless, I held to my convictions. In this case, she sad she had been moved and I was stunned - and deeply thankful for her sharing that while we did not agree, she did respect my actions.
Holding to our values doesn't always result in positive results, but that's not why we hold to them, is it? I didn't hold to mine gain glory. I held to mine because two of my values are integrity and justice and I believe in coupling belief (and compassion) with action. Funny, how standing up for what was right sparked others who had been previously too timid to stand up. That's part of it all, right?
Hope you don't mind my sharing that little story here :) I saw Atlas Shrugged and Ayn Rand in the reply above and was inspired by your posting! It would be kind of cool to have a little collection of stories, I think, about the positive results of living our values…
sherri, i understand your passion concerning values…and can only share my experience…
when values exist only as a set of proposed principles, they only encourage judgments, and become something to toss around and cause guilt in those that do not appear to live up to another's standards…
however; when values are lived…each moment…and adapted within awareness as condtions call for them too…when values are expressed, instead of just listed as this or that…then they become a living experience…expressed in each moment as truth…and are no longer just a concocted list of things that one must adhere to to be accepted by those that hold them…
whether it be the teachings of christ or buddha or whomever…those are only teachings that point to a greater truth…imho…that truth is always within one's own true nature…we are just mostly too distracted to recognize it…
always, star…
Hey Sherri, OM Bastet and Erin,
I val-YOU all of you just as much as I val-YOU me. That is the only val-YOU I choose to hold on to.
“Do unto others as you would have them do unto you.” – The Golden Rule
Peace, I'm out!!! ;-)
Brian
Thanks Star and Brian.
Yes, I have been in so many places where the mission and vision and values etc. were the output of a planning process that stopped after they left the room lol I've led or been part of a number of such strategy sessions. I am not intending to judge anyone; I just have my own way and I now tell my story on realising that there are lots of people who might have considered following an entrepreneurial path that is untraditional.
I have to admit, it feels so much more comfortable to do what I feel is in line with my way of living, that I couldn't see myself doing it any other way now. I'm sure I'm not alone, maybe I am rare but I am not alone.
The Golden Rule applies yes, and in my case, an even higher rule: “Be the change you wish to see in the world…”, even if it is a business. And I am certain this applies to Brian as well :)
Thanks for commenting. Bless you. sherri
Yes Sherri,
We are the mirror as well as the reflection. You and I are gifts to give.
Thank you,
Hal
I am thankful for all the gifts Sherri,
for words of wisdom, gems of truth and the peace in knowing the dvinity in beautiful people like you..
thank you…
Oh, I am really so honoured to be in the company of such people. This is the ultimate reward for me; I hope you know how much I appreciate this positivity after all of these years of persons not getting 'it'. Nevertheless, everything in its due time and I pray only the best of things for you.
Love, sherri
Sherri,
When I read this a day ago, after you posted it on my blog, there were no comments. Wow. Wish I would have had time to comment then. I really resonated with this line -
“the biggest of the challenges lies in faith; in keeping that big picture in thoughts. The picture that says: sticking closely to your goodness and decency will be worth it in the end. And the end is yet in sight.” and I agree that “society still appears to undervalue values”.
You said “returns on investing in principle and holistic value will reflect such giving too.” and I believe that is true. And good advice -> “Learn to value ALL the blessings” thoughts yours and emphasis mine. ONE.
Deborah
Deb I am so pleased to see you are with me; you couldn't know how much.
All I've wanted in my time since waking up was to help other 'good' people feel that they are 'good enough' in this world; that living a decent and contributive [quality] life is quite allright. It's not about being perfect or better than anyone, it's about doing your bit in the world and doing it properly.
So when I write these things they're from the heart and from the spirit as well, certainly. With the 'heart' part, I can tell you that the return to me right now, even though it is many months later, is HUGE and I feel quite awesome about it. Perhaps you can read my recent blog [if you haven't already] about the Eternal Reach of Time. It's connected to the holistic and long-term value concept, and how my efforts have come full circle and I love it!
Thanks so much for commenting. I am happy I could have been helpful.
Best to you! sherri