5 Hassle-Free Steps To Setting Values-Driven Goals (+Free Workbook)

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You don’t need to wait until the New Year to set values-driven goals. You can start right now and take a step towards living the life of your dreams.

As a recovering perfectionist, I have experienced firsthand the pain of chasing after one goal after another without ever feeling fulfilled.

It was only when I switched my mindset from being solely goals-driven to focusing on living a values-driven life, that I was finally able to feel happy.

In this blog post, I go over the top 5 things I did to create values-driven goals from scratch and I explain my SMARTER (Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant, Time-bound, Empowering, Reflective) goal-setting framework in detail.

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Table of Contents

What are values-driven goals?

Values-driven goals are goals that are in alignment with your core values and beliefs.

Simply put, your values are the things that matter to you the most, the things that you base your decisions on and help you decide HOW you want to live your life.

Whereas your goals are aims or objectives you set to achieve in the future. They are normally (or at least, should be) Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant and Time-bound (SMART).

When you combine your values and goals together to create values-driven goals, you feel more motivated to work towards creating your dream life and live as your ‘true self’ rather than play the role of a ‘successful person’.

For example, instead of becoming a doctor like your family wants you to do, you focus on working towards your values-driven goal of becoming a teacher because it means more to you.

You only have one life so there’s no point living a ‘role’ life filled with unhappiness until you ultimately have a mid-life crisis and nuke everything you worked hard to achieve…

Anyway…

Moving swiftly on.

Why set these types of goals in the first place?

There are so many reasons to set values-driven goals in your life from simple things such as being happier to more complex reasons such as long-term sustainability and focus.

This is something that perfectionists really need to pay attention to because we tend to fall into the habit of people-pleasing and overworking ourselves until we burn out trying to achieve goals that are not in alignment with our values.

Trust me I am speaking from experience!

I spent many years studying hard and climbing up the career ladder thinking that achieving my goal of getting a promotion and better pay would make me feel happier.

Instead, I came face-to-face with the cold hard reality that goals that are not aligned with my values are empty and unfulfilling because there is ALWAYS another goal.

And another goal and another goal after that and so on.

That forced me to look deeply at my core values and realign my whole life so that I could focus on the most important things.

Having a values-driven mindset is a game-changer!

Here are some of the benefits that I learnt about values-driven goals:

They motivate you to keep going when times get hard because you know that they actually MEAN something to you – they are connected to your true purpose and desires
You stop playing your ‘role-self’ and start learning more about who you truly are by showing up authentically. No more people-pleasing or imposter syndrome
It’s easier to stay consistent and show up every day towards your goals without feeling like it is a chore
It is a much more holistic approach that ensures you look after your wellbeing while working towards your goals because you know you’re in it for the long run
You’ll have lower levels of stress and anxiety because you won’t be pursuing goals that don’t resonate with your true self

What is the difference between normal goals and values-based goals?

Normal goals tend to be goals based on external factors such as family and societal expectations, desire for rewards, acknowledgement and/or praise or even fear of failure.

Whereas, value-driven goals tend to be based on intrinsic motivations such as your own personal beliefs, principles, desires and expectations for yourself.

It’s all about you

Besides, anyone can set a goal. It doesn’t mean you’ll have the motivation to work towards it or feel satisfied when you achieve it.

Here are a few differences between values-driven goals and normal goals

Values-driven goals are intrinsically motivated vs normal goals are extrinsically motivated
Normal goals focus solely on specific outcomes (e.g. earning a certain salary) vs values-driven goals focus on the process and experience of achieving your goal (e.g. a more fulfilling life)
Values-driven goals are designed to fit into your true-self ideal life vs normal goals can be focused on pleasing others (E.g. status, fame, respect)
Values-driven goals are flexible and allow for adaptation while maintaining alignment with your values vs normal goals can be more rigid and inflexible

5 essential steps to effective goal-setting

scrabble cubes spelling out the word why

1. Start with why

Before you begin setting your values-driven goals it’s really important to think about the reasons WHY you want to set these goals in the first place.

Understanding your why gives you clarity and purpose and will keep you motivated when you face challenges during your goal-setting journey.

I recommend you think about what was NOT working when you tried to set goals in the past:

Did your previous goals connect with your true self or role-self?
Were your previous goals unrealistic or too big to be completed in the time frame you set?
Did you feel any internal resistance when setting goals in the past?

You also need to think about your current reality and identify areas that need to be in better alignment with the ideal version of yourself.

Because at the end of the day, there is a reason why you’ve clicked on this article and there is a reason why you want to set values-driven goals.

You know deep down why the old method was not working for you so taking the time to connect the dots will speed up your goal-setting process because you can do things differently now.

a woman pointing at the camera - identify your values

2. Identify your values

This is hands down the most important step when it comes to setting values-driven goals because let’s be real, how in the world are you going to set values-driven goals if you don’t know what your values are?

Make it make sense!

Your values are the guiding principles and beliefs that shape your behaviour and decisions.

They are a combination of the things that are most important to you and traits you admire in others. Identifying your values gives you a foundation for setting meaningful goals that bring you closer to self-actualisation and fulfilment in life.

I passionately promote values-based living in my coaching and business model because I believe it is the most important thing you can do when trying to change your life for the better.

To identify your values you need to answer some deep questions and TRULY be honest with yourself in the process:

What activities bring you the most joy in life?
What qualities do you admire most in others?
What issues or causes are you most passionate about?
What do you spend most of your time thinking about or doing?
If you had to teach a class on one thing, what would it be and why?
What would you regret not doing, being or having in your life?

Take note of the key themes that keep coming up when you’re answering these questions. You can download the FREE Values Over Perfection workbook to help you identify your values from a list of 96!

In the meantime, here are some common values:

Integrity
Respect
Family
Growth
Creativity
Courage
Community
Faith
Balance
Adventure

When you’ve identified your top 3-5 values, rank them in order of importance which will give you a framework for setting your future goals.

a person writing in an open notebook to write down your vision and create a purpose statement

3. Define your vision and create a purpose statement

Having a clear vision and mission will give you direction and purpose for achieving your goals and they build really nicely on top of the foundation of your values.

It’s something that I always encourage my clients to do because it combines dreams, aspirations, values and life goals all into one nicely wrapped sentence.

Your vision is the picture that you have in your mind of your ideal self and ideal life.

Basically, what would your life look like if your values bar were set to the max? Try to imagine a sim or video game character with a little health bar over their head but instead of health, it’s your values bar.

For example, family and freedom are very important to me so my ideal life involves being able to spend time with my family while still being able to enjoy the flexibility of travel.

The image I have in my mind is a nice happy home filled with laughter, children running about, my own successful business that allows me to work anywhere in the world and a healthy bank account that gives me the option to go on holiday whenever I want.

Your purpose statement is a sentence that summarises your core values and vision in a way that empowers you to keep going. You need to make sure it resonates deeply with your ideal self and is always something you wish to strive towards.

For example ‘To bring positivity to every interaction, creating a balanced life that prioritises family, personal growth, and making a positive impact in my community.’

The FREE Values Over Perfection Workbook has a whole section dedicated to creating your purpose statement, breaking it down into a step-by-step process.

Once you have your values and purpose statement you will be able to start setting specific goals to help you get closer to becoming the ideal version of yourself.

goals for the year printable for setting smarter goals

4. Set SMARTER goals

I’m a big believer in setting SMARTER goals. The -ER are an addition to the traditional SMART (Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant, Time-bound) goal-setting framework and stands for Empowering and Reflective.

Those 2 extra letters are designed to build your values and purpose statement into your goals to ensure continuous growth and motivation.

Setting SMARTER Goals gives you a better chance of actually achieving your goals by giving you a clear roadmap to follow.

Specific

It’s important to be really specific when setting your goals because it provides clarity on what you want to achieve and avoids ambiguity.

There is nothing worse than having vague goals because goalposts always end up moving around, causing confusion and unnecessary stress.

Clearly define what you want to accomplish by asking yourself:

What exactly do I want to achieve?
Why is this goal important?
Who is involved?
Where will it take place?

Try to keep it simple and get to the root of your objective.

For example, instead of saying ‘I want to get fit’, say ‘I want to run a 5k race in 30 minutes’.

Measurable

Making sure your goals are measurable will help you keep track of your progress and determine when the goal has been achieved. This step is important for determining milestones and checkpoints in your personal growth journey.

Think of the different ways you can measure your progress and your criteria for success.

For example, if your goal is to lose weight, you can decide to measure it via kilograms, pounds, inches (around the waist), distance and time of a run etc…

You need to decide on your method BEFORE you start working towards your goals because it is ridiculously easy to get confused and forget how much you have achieved.

For example, ‘I will run 3 times a week and track my distance and time with a running app’.

Achievable

Achievable goals seem to be something that perfectionists are allergic to which is why it’s more important than ever to focus on this aspect of SMARTER goals.

This step ensures that your goal is realistic and attainable given the resources and constraints you already have. It’s a great way to prevent frustration from setting goals that are too ambitious or unrealistic.

Failure to set achievable goals can result in anxiety, burnout, procrastination and fear of failure ruling your life. Which is not something you want to deal with.

To set achievable goals you need to

Assess whether the goal can be accomplished with your current capabilities and resources.
Consider any limitations challenges or obstacles you may face in your journey
Break down your goal into smaller tasks that are realistic
Be honest with yourself

For example, ‘I will follow a structured 5K training plan that gradually increases my running distance.’

Relevant

This step ensures that your goals align with your core values and objectives in the 8 areas of your life (health and fitness, personal and spiritual growth, friends and family, romantic relationships, career and business, financial health, fun and recreation, physical environment).

Aligning your goals with your values ensures that you are living your life in a meaningful way and your goals will have a positive impact on your overall life satisfaction.

There is no point in setting goals that aren’t in any way relevant to the life that you want to live. Sometimes, it’s easy to get swept up in chasing goals that sound nice on paper but don’t actually add value to our lives.

I’ve definitely been guilty of that.

For example, I went through a phase where I was OBSESSED with starting a career in Management Consulting. I attended every career fair, open day and networking event with the Big Four accounting firms convinced that I was destined to join their graduate scheme.

It was only after I PROPERLY looked into the job role and evaluated how it would fit into my personality and life vision, that I realised that I was chasing the wrong goal.

Don’t be like me. Don’t skip this step.

Building on our previous example: ‘Running a 5k supports my value of courage and contributes to my long-term health and fitness goal of maintaining an active, mobile lifestyle.

Relevant Post: How to stop living life on autopilot – 7 game-changing steps

Time-bound

A time-bound goal provides you with a clear deadline for achievement which creates a sense of time pressure and urgency to help you focus. It enables you to prioritise the goals that are most urgent and beneficial to your life right now and in the future.

I like to look at my five-year goals and break them down into one-year goals and then break them down further into 12-week goals.

Then those 12-week goals can be broken down into one-week increments that are much more achievable and less daunting.

These time constraints prevent procrastination and help you plan out your goal more effectively.

For example, ‘I will complete the 5k race by the end of 3 months. The first milestone is running 5k nonstop by the 6-week mark, the second milestone is running 5k in 30 minutes by the 10-week mark’.

Empowering

Empowering goals connect you with your ideal self and your vision for your ideal life. It’s important to include this step in your goal-setting process because it gives you the opportunity to visualise how your goal impacts your future.

I recommend you take some time to think about the following things:

How achieving this goal will make you feel
What it enables you to do
The benefits you will gain from achieving this goal

E.g. running 5K in 30 minutes will make you feel more confident, energetic and happier inside of your body.

Doing this mindful activity will increase your motivation and commitment cementing an image in your mind of what success looks like. Your goal is no longer a separate abstract thing, it’s now something you can almost feel, touch and live.

When it comes to building resilience, I am always preaching about repetition and emotion so this is the perfect way to build an emotional connection with your goals.

Reflective

It’s impossible to create a mindful productivity system without incorporating regular review points and adjustment periods. You need to be able to evaluate your progress and consider what is working and what is not.

This is different from the measurable step because this focuses on checking in with your values, thoughts and feelings. It’s much more subjective but is still essential.

I like to use my bullet journal to help me keep track of my values-driven goals. I do a daily summary, a weekly review, a monthly check-in and a quarterly goal review. I ask myself questions such as:

What went well?
What didn’t go so well?
Did I behave in alignment with my values?
What am I doing too much of or too little of towards my goals?
What lessons have I learned since the last review point?
How can I incorporate those lessons into the next chapter?
How does working towards this goal make me feel?

This type of reflection gives you the opportunity to make necessary adjustments to your plan and stay aligned with your values and objectives

For example ‘I will write about my thoughts and feelings in my journal after each run. I will also do a weekly review to check in on my mindset’.

a notebook with the words 'today' followed by a list of numbers 1-4 to create a mindful action plan

5. Create a Mindful Action Plan

Now you know what your goals are you need to create an action plan that is empowering and realistic. This is why I encourage you to create a Mindful Action Plan.

A mindful action plan integrates mindfulness practices and goal-setting processes to make sure that your goals are in alignment with your values and can be realistically achieved.

It contains everything discussed in this article and puts it all into a structured format that you can easily refer back to. A useful action plan should include the following components:

Core values: clearly defined core values that provide the foundation for your goals
Goals and intentions: SMARTER goals (Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant, Time-bound, Empowering, Reflective) and clear intentions
Task list: detailed list of tasks broken down into manageable steps with deadlines
Resource list: list of internal and external resources needed to complete your goal
Productivity systems and routines: tailored time management techniques, morning and evening routines and scheduled mindful breaks
Reflection and review: regular reflection practices, progress tracking, quarterly reviews and celebration of successes

What goals are you setting this year?

To start living the life that you actually WANT and NEED to live, you must start with identifying your core values and purpose so that you can set SMARTER goals based on them.

Setting goals without incorporating your values is a fast track to feeling hollow and unfulfilled in life which is the last thing you want to experience.

You only have ONE life which is why it’s more important than ever to focus on creating values-driven goals.

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Spread the love

5 Hassle-Free Steps To Setting Values-Driven Goals (+Free Workbook)

What are values-driven goals?

Why set these types of goals in the first place?

What is the difference between normal goals and values-based goals?