personal values
What matters most
Personal values are the principles and beliefs that guide a person's behavior and decisions—what they consider important, right, or worthwhile.
These might include honesty, loyalty, ambition, family, or faith.
Personal values shape priorities and judgments: Her personal values wouldn't let her take credit for someone else's work.
They often conflict with external pressures or institutional demands.
- authenticityQuality of being genuine
- staying trueMaintaining loyalty or integrity
- empathySharing another's emotions
- accountabilityObligation for one's actions
- purposeReason something exists
family first · fairness · integrity · courage · ambition · honesty · compassion · independence · kindness · giving back · perseverance · generosity · humility · self-discipline · justice · resilience · civility · morals
- authenticityauthentic, genuine, real, fake, counterfeit
- private spherehome, family, diary, secrets, bedroom
- selfself-awareness, self-concept, self-esteem, self-knowledge, self-image
- self-evaluationself-assessment, self-evaluation, self-review, self-reflection, self-analysis
- self-worthself-esteem, self-worth, self-respect, self-love, self-acceptance
- ethicsmorality, deontology, dignity, sanctity of life, utilitarianism
personal valuessocietal norms
Shared behavioral standards
legal requirements · religious commandments · governmental regulations · cultural expectations · peer pressure
personal valuesuniversal values
Principles recognized across societies
collective values · shared values · community values · group norms · public morality
personal valueswhims
Spontaneous, capricious notions
lip service · situational ethics · moral relativism · self-interest · valuelessness