Mentoring toolsMentoring tool
Values exercise
Our decisions are often driven by values we are not even aware of. Find the five out of 40 cards you could not do without, then look at how fully you live those values at work today.
15 minutesCareer and decision sessionsYour answers stay with you
- Pick ten values
- Narrow to five
- Rank and score
- Alignment map
Pick the 10 values closest to you
Choose what you truly care about today, not the person you would like to be. If you hesitate over a card, skip it.
0 / 10 selectedNow narrow it down to five
This is the hard part. Ask yourself: "If I couldn't live this value for a whole year, would I still be me?" If the answer is "no," keep it.
0 / 5 selectedRank them and look at your work
Move the most important one to the top. Then ask for each value: How fully do I live this value in my current job? If you like, write one sentence on what the value means to you.
Your values alignment map
0alignment
Your choices are not sent anywhere; they are stored only in this browser.
For the mentor
Questions to ask in the session
- Can you describe a moment when you lived your number one value most fully?
- Which value was hardest to let go of? Why?
- Why is your lowest-scoring value missing at work: is it the role, the team or you?
- Think of a recent hard decision: which value did it serve, and which did it strain?
- What could you try next month to live this value a little more at work?
How to use it
In three steps
- The mentee does the exercise alone and brings the alignment map as a PDF. It is important not to rush while narrowing down the cards.
- In the session the mentor asks questions rather than offering opinions. There are no right or wrong values; the mentor should not put their own values forward.
- For career decisions (a new role, a move to another city, a promotion) score the options against these five values.