I am a privileged man in life.

I am a privileged man in life.
I was always allowed to do what corresponded to my values.
Most of the time, I have been able to do it as I saw fit since I was an adult.
I am convinced that this is also one of the reasons why I still get so much pleasure from what I have been allowed to do all my life.

The question that concerns me now is how I came to have this privilege. Was I living purposefully, or was I value-driven after all? For example, one of my LinkedIn friends, Thomas Behncke, published a post titled: „Give your life a concrete direction!“ Did I do that?

I think not. In my life, it has probably been the case that I have tended to follow my current needs, adapting to the specifics of the current situation. And obviously, it has been the case that in this development process, I have always been allowed to make decisions at critical points so that I could remain faithful to my value system.

Along the way, I have failed several times to achieve the goals that I had set out to achieve. Afterwards, I got up and set out for new destinations in the direction marked by my value system. So today, I still find myself travelling in the same direction.
Unlike goals, you can’t achieve values; you can only follow them.

One of the most impressive stories I can think of to illustrate the difference between value-led and goal-led is that of the man who, on his way down from Jerusalem to Jericho, saw a man by the roadside who had been robbed and beaten and was now lying helpless in the dirt. His purpose in going to Jericho was probably business.

Others had passed by here before him, and they, too, were pursuing undoubtedly essential goals. However, the man on the way to Jericho followed his value system. He deviated from his path to his destination, picked up the beaten man, bandaged his wounds and took him to the nearest inn where he could be cared for. Moreover, he still took responsibility for his aftercare.
To be read: Lk 10:30-37.

Clear goals and solid values, both are essential elements of an orderly way of life. But, for me, they should also be related to each other. Goals arise from our needs, especially our basic needs. In formulating them, we should be guided by values so that at the end of our lives, we can look back with satisfaction on the path behind us.

In coaching and pedagogy, the question of guiding values is, therefore, for me, absolutely prior to the question of goals.