Values as Bearings: Turn a Principle into a Choice
Use values as bearings to distinguish a principle from a broad aspiration, then turn it into an action that clarifies how two career choices fit.
You have two job tabs open: one for a more senior title, the other for a role with time to coach colleagues. Values as bearings can help you compare them by the work you hope to do, not by the promise each title suggests.
Principles and aspirations
An aspiration describes a result or condition you hope to reach. “I want a meaningful career” is an aspiration. So are “I want to feel settled” and “I want more freedom”. Each points towards a desirable future, but several different paths might lead there.
A value describes a quality you want to bring to your choices and conduct. Curiosity, care, honesty and contribution can guide you in changing circumstances. A value is not a destination you arrive at once. It is a principle you can keep expressing in different situations.
An aspiration can be too broad to compare options. A value becomes useful when it helps you notice what a choice would ask of you. “I want more freedom” might mean independence, creative control or fewer interruptions. Ask what you hope to do with that freedom.
Write down the aspiration as it first occurs to you. Then ask, “What quality am I hoping to experience or practise?” Look for a principle rather than a polished motto.
Finding the underlying value
Translate the hoped-for result by naming the behaviour or quality that gives it meaning. “I want to be respected” might point to dignity, mutual regard or speaking honestly. “I want to make a difference” might point to service, craft or responsibility. Choose language that feels like yours.
Try the prompt, “I feel most like myself when I…” Finish it with an action or way of relating to people. You might write, “I explain complicated things patiently,” “I make room for other people’s ideas,” or “I protect time for careful work.” The action often reveals more than an abstract noun.
Check whether the principle can apply in more than one setting. If it only makes sense in one job, it may be a goal or preference. If you can practise it in work, friendship, learning or daily routines, it may guide you across different futures.
Turning values into actions
A value becomes easier to use when you describe what you will do. “Creativity” can become “I make space to develop and share ideas.” “Care” can become “I listen before I offer advice.” “Learning” can become “I ask questions and try unfamiliar tasks.” These phrases describe a principle in motion, not a rule for every moment.
Leave room for judgement. “I always say yes to others” is rigid and may conflict with other values. “I offer help while being honest about my capacity” describes care without claiming that one behaviour fits every situation.
Say you are choosing between a senior role and one that includes regular coaching. You write, “I help people build skills, including my own.” You then compare the ordinary work: the coaching role offers a clear chance to support colleagues, while the senior role’s mentoring duties are still unclear. You ask the hiring manager what mentoring involves and learn that it is a regular part of the senior role. The phrase now fits both options, so your decision can turn on other priorities, such as the work you want to learn or the responsibilities you are ready to accept.
A fair comparison
Place each option beside the same action phrase. Consider what you could do, what would be harder and whether the action fits an ordinary working week rather than an idealised picture of the role.
A comparison table can help you keep the details distinct:
- Choice: Check whether you have named the actual role and duties; if you have only written a title, then add the known responsibilities before comparing.
- Value in action: Check whether the phrase describes something you can do; if it is only an abstract word, then rewrite it as a behaviour.
- Room to act: Check what the role makes possible or difficult; if the opportunity is not described, then mark it as unknown rather than assuming it is available.
- Trade-off: Check what you would give up or need to negotiate; if the cost is acceptable, then keep it in view, and if it is not, then consider another option or a negotiation.
- Open detail: Check which fact could change your decision; if you can ask someone about it, then raise a specific question, and if you cannot yet confirm it, then leave it unresolved rather than treating it as proof.
- Other value: Check whether the choice supports one principle while straining another; if both matter, then write down the compromise each option requires instead of forcing them into a single answer.
Do not turn the table into a scoring contest. A choice can support one value and strain another. You might value both independence and collaboration. The comparison is there to show the tension, not make it vanish.
Use a focused conversation to clarify a job detail. For example, ask a manager, “How much discretion would I have over the way I organise this work?” The answer may alter your view of the role; it need not settle the whole decision.
Keeping the bearing flexible
An action phrase should guide a choice, not trap you in it. “I make space for careful work” does not mean refusing every urgent task. It helps you distinguish occasional urgency from a role that leaves little room for the work you value.
Values can compete. If you value both stability and exploration, a choice that favours one may put pressure on the other. Name each value as an action, then consider what each option asks you to protect, postpone or accept. That is more honest than expecting one principle to settle everything.
Revise the wording if your circumstances change. A phrase that once helped you choose may become too narrow, or call for a different action in a new setting. Keep the principle if it still feels meaningful; adjust the behaviour to fit the life you are considering.
Questions about values as bearings?
How is a value different from a goal?
A goal is an outcome you may reach, such as moving into a new role. A value is a quality you can practise along the way, such as curiosity or care.
What if two values point in different directions?
Describe each value as an action and notice what each option supports or makes harder. Choose with the trade-off in view rather than pretending the values agree.
Can the same value support either choice?
Yes. An action phrase may fit both options, but their settings and demands can differ. Compare the everyday opportunities each one offers to practise that action.
A phrase you can use
Before deciding, write one sentence that begins, “I want to practise…” Keep it specific enough to guide a comparison and broad enough to remain useful if the options change. Values as bearings help you see what you can do within a choice; they do not predict which path will be perfect.
Take the sentence into your next conversation about the decision. Ask what the role would let you practise, and what it would ask you to set aside.
