WHAT ARE VALUES?
Although most people couldn’t define exactly what values are, everyone understands that our values represent ‘what we value’ – or in other words what we believe is truly important, or worth pursuing in life.
It’s a fact that our values shape our world and define our choices in practically every aspect of our lives, from big choices e.g. of a career or life partner, to everyday choices e.g. of the brands we use or buy.
Milton Rokeach, the renowned social psychologist, defined values as sets of “centrally held, enduring beliefs which guide actions and judgments across specific situations and beyond immediate goals to more ultimate end states of existence.”
Q.i. understands that while values do manifest as beliefs, they are considerably more than just belief systems – they are powered and underpinned by our emotions and emotional needs and are shaped by our perceptions of who we really are.
Q.i’s research demonstrates that our deepest feelings and emotional needs are not embellishments of our beliefs, but are the bedrock of our value systems.
In the final analysis, it is our values that define us. They represent what we love, and what brings us to life, and they also reflect what we hate and would like to eliminate from our world.
Values Q & A
Q. Why are Values important?
They are important because …
A. What you value determines who you are, how you perceive the world, what you do or pursue, and why you do it.
A. Values have proved to be 2 to 5 times more influential than demographics in determining consumer behavior. (Source: Q.i Value of Values Studies, 2012/3, 2015/6, 2019).
A. Brands and organizations are literally Value systems.
A. A company functions most effectively when the values it embodies are perfectly aligned throughout
an organization: across every expression and every touchpoint of the business.
Q. Are we conscious of our values?
A. Most people, unfortunately, are barely conscious of the underlying value systems that shape their lives. With help however, it is possible to understand and articulate what is most important and valuable in one’s life.
It is possible to “see” how one’s values manifest in one’s likes and dislikes, in desires, needs and hopes, goals, beliefs and affirmations.
A person’s values manifest on a gradient from barely conscious drives like prejudices, fears, and emotional needs, to consciously articulated beliefs that include, corporate goals and affirmations – like vision, mission, and values statements.