Clarify Your Values Step-by-Step
Episode Summary
Values guide your decisions, shape your wellbeing, and act as your internal compass — but only if they’re clear.
In this episode of The Pocket Ninja Podcast, Jehanne Marie Burns walks you through a practical, step-by-step method to clarify your personal values and build a functional value system you can actually use in real life.
This is not conceptual values work. This episode breaks values down into an actionable process that helps you move from confusion and internal conflict to clarity, alignment, and better decision-making — personally, professionally, and in business.
In This Episode, You’ll Learn:
- How forced ranking creates clarity and better decisions
- How to clarify your values instead of trying to create them
- Why values without hierarchy create internal conflict
- The difference between values and a values system
- How see patterns and themes in what truly matters to you
- Why defining your values in your own words is critical
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Transcript
Welcome to the Pocket Ninja Podcast, where big picture wisdom meets practical tools.
If you’ve been following along on the podcast with us, we’ve had all this talk about values, and you probably get why they matter. You get that values guide your decisions, shape your wellbeing, and act like an internal compass. But you’re probably questioning… but how do I figure out my values and my value systems? Not theoretically. Not conceptually. But step by step — what do I actually do?
Not to worry. I’ve got you covered.
Today, we’re cutting through the confusion about values work and walking through the exact method to clarify your personal values. By the end of this episode, you’ll understand how to identify and articulate your top 5 values, how to create a value system, and why having this system clarified is so important.
Now, to put all this into context on the podcast, we’ve been talking about clarity, fulfillment, and the power of the Playbook as it acts as both a compass and a catalyst on your journey to fulfillment.
If you remember from previous episodes, a Playbook — whether it’s personal, professional, or business — has 3 main parts.
Part 1: Purpose — your deeper why, which we now know is joy and service, in that order.
Part 2: The Pillars — Values, Strengths, and Goals.
Part 3: Practice — systems for success.
So in this episode, we’re moving into Part 2 of the Playbook — the Pillars — and honing in on the first pillar: Values.
Let’s get into it.
Okay, so Pillar 2: Values. Note that I said clarify, not create. Because I believe your values already exist within you — they’re just not clear. And when they’re murky, they’re hard to use.
We often have an idea of what we value, but we don’t have the words. And we don’t have the hierarchy — which we know is essential.
In the values exercise I use for personal, professional, and business contexts, we clarify your top 5 values in a hierarchy, so we can create a value system. A value system is the content — the values — plus the intensity — the order — and together, that’s what makes it usable.
Let’s break down the process into 5 steps. In this episode, I’ll cover steps 1 through 4:
Select, group, label, define, and rank.
In the next episode, we’ll talk about how to live your values — values in action.
Step 1: Select Your Values
There’s an exercise on my website — it’s a paid resource — and you’ll find the link in the podcast section at www.pocketninjastrategies.com.
In the exercise, you’ll see hundreds of words. Your job is to select only 25 to 30 words that truly matter to you when you think about being well, happy, and successful.
This is where people struggle. They want to choose 50 or 80 words because everything feels important.
Here’s the truth bomb:
If everything is important, nothing is important.
Trying to value everything creates internal conflict and decision paralysis. It’s impossible to move forward with clarity when nothing is prioritized.
You cannot be well, happy, and successful in everything, for everyone, all at once. You have to make strategic choices.
This is why we end up stuck in logic loops — pros and cons lists, asking everyone else what they think — because everyone has a different value system.
Clarity is the quality of being easy to understand. If everything matters, nothing is clear.
Think about the golden triangle in business: fast, cheap, good. You can be 2, but not all 3. The same is true in life.
When selecting your values:
- Think about what would make 8-year-old you and 80-year-old you proud.
- Don’t overthink it. Trust what resonates.
- Refine later. Remove overlap. Let one word capture multiple meanings.
And one big disclaimer — especially for entrepreneurs and businesses:
Don’t select what you should value. Select what actually matters to you.
Once you’ve selected your list, review it for:
- Shoulds and have-tos
- Words you avoided because you think you can’t or shouldn’t want them
Pay attention to how each word feels in your body. That matters.
Step 2: Group and Label
Once you have 25–30 words, group them into no more than 5 groups. This is where the alchemy happens.
As you group similar words, themes emerge. This is synergy — when the whole is greater than the sum of the parts.
Look for natural patterns:
- Calm and nature
- Success and freedom
- Service and contribution
There’s no right answer. Move words around until it feels right.
Then label each group with a word that captures the essence of that group. You can:
- Use one of the existing words, or
- Find a new word that better represents the theme
Don’t get stuck here. Labels can evolve.
Step 3: Define Your Values
Words are loaded. They carry meaning — personal and cultural.
Two people can share the same value word and mean completely different things.
This is why defining your values matters more than labeling them.
Your definition should:
- Be short
- Be clear
- Be easy to say out loud
Use phrasing like:
- “What matters to me is…”
For example:
- Freedom: What matters to me is playing by my own rules.
- Connection: What matters to me is being deeply connected to what I truly care about.
Say your definitions out loud. They should fall out of your mouth naturally.
Step 4: Rank Your Values
This is where the value system is created.
Without hierarchy, values compete — and conflict.
You’ll use forced ranking:
- Compare each value against every other value
- Ask: If I had to choose one slightly more than the other, which would it be?
Mark your choices. The value with the most selections becomes #1.
This doesn’t mean you don’t want all 5 values. It means you know the order they matter.
For me, success is #5. It matters — but not more than freedom, adventure, leadership, or connection.
That’s clarity.
What’s harder than clarifying your values is living them — and that’s what the next episode is about.
Before you go, pause and reflect:
What’s one insight from this episode that shifted your thinking or gave you something to practice?
Because we don’t want good ideas — we want real results.
Thank you for tuning in to the Pocket Ninja Podcast, where big-picture wisdom meets practical tools.
Disclaimer: This podcast offers general insights and is not a substitute for personalized professional advice. You are the expert in your own life.
Ready to go deeper and get clarity on your next level?