Rooted: 5 core values that brought me to blogging

Feeling a bit more personal today, so I decided to write about the core values that led me to blogging and digital marketing. These are the values that connect me to my purpose, that help me feel rooted and grounded wherever I’m at. I’m also sharing the methods that helped me identify my core values, so follow along if you’re looking to get clarity on yours.

I believe in letting your values guide your life decisions. I believe in taking aligned action, making choices that bring you closer to your values over time. But before I could ever make those kinds of choices, I had to figure out exactly what my values are.

I went through a pretty tumultuous period in late 2021-2022. I was in survival mode, and definitely lost sight of my values. It’s easy to do when you’re just trying to make it out alive. But as I slowly came out of constant fight-or-flight, I realized I needed to reevaluate my life and the things I let guide it. I did a lot of work on identifying my values, because I realized I needed those pillars to build the rest back up.

The first thing I did was look up a list of life values online. I just copied and pasted one that seemed pretty comprehensive. Then I spent time reading through the list, and I narrowed it down to the top 10 values that felt really important to me. They were things I knew I wouldn’t compromise on. And then I sort of bounced them off of each other until I had narrowed it down to five. I call these my core values and they inform every decision I make, especially the big decisions that have life-changing effects.

community

I really treasure a close-knit community, a village, where I can feel loved and valued and where I find like-minded friends that I can trust. The choices I make in my life bring me closer to community; I try to foster close friendships and let my friends and acquaintances know how much I value them.

growth

When I’m considering my options when faced with a decision, I ask myself, “which option will help me grow?” I have gone through periods in my life where I felt stagnant and stale, where I felt like I was just keeping up the status quo but not really going anywhere. While those periods are surely normal and to be expected, I know they are extra frustrating for me because I always want to feel like I’m growing as a person.

beauty

This one was actually kind of a surprise to me when I realized it was one of my core values. I need the beauty of nature, of human interaction, of design and aesthetic, in order to feel like I’m living my best life. Not only that, but I need to feel like I’m creating something of beauty often. When I go days without experiencing beauty, I feel more hollowed out, less grounded.

meaningful work

The caveat to this one is that just about any kind of work can be meaningful if you seek the meaning in it, but I always want to feel like the work I’m doing is purposeful and meaningful. I need to be able to find the meaning in it, and to see that it’s doing some kind of good in the world.

stability

I really value feeling secure and stable in all areas of my life: my marriage, my family, my finances. I am a creature of habit and routine and so stability and security are definitely important to me in a big way.

so where does blogging come into all of this?

I knew that blogging had the potential to foster a great community. I’ve already experienced the kind of wonderful community that can develop in online spaces as a Twitch streamer, so I knew that blogging had the same potential. It’s also a great vehicle for growth and self-reflection: even just writing this post is helping to ingrain my values in my mind, and I know that it’s going to stretch and challenge me as I continue. I get to exercise my eye for design and beauty as I write posts and create graphics for social media, and it also helps keep an eye out for beauty in the world that I can write about! The things I write about - whether it’s ways to help other people make money online, digital marketing strategies, or just life, like this post - are meaningful and their purpose is to help other people. And while I’m still just starting out and haven’t seen this yet, I know it has potential to bring financial stability to me and my family, and it also lends structure to my day, as I spend time working on the blog daily.

What are your core values? How do they inform your big life decisions? Let me know in the comments!

All the best,

originally posted on emileereally.com on 24 August 2023