| Aim | The aim of this activity is to have participants share and profoundly understand the core values in their life |
| Trainee profile | Any. People with special needs can participate as long as they are able to express themselves. |
| Learning Objectives | To build self-awareness on your own core life values
To spark conversation and promote friendships within your team To understand the importance of keeping positive values alive To trigger the understanding of how difficult it is to make a selection in life |
| n° participants | Up to 20 people |
| Duration | 40 minutes |
| Materials | For each participant: n° 10 small paper sheets (A6 size or similar), n° 1 marker and n° 1 chair (if possible).
For the facilitator: n° 1 hat or container where to collect the papers |
| Preparation | Set two concentric circles of chairs (an inner and an outer one) in the room, with the same number of chairs. Each chair of the inner circle should face a chair of the outer circle.
If not possible, due to the lack of space, you may create two lines of chairs facing each other. If not possible, due to the lack of chairs, you may create room for the participants to sit on the ground. |
| Implementation | 1. Divide your participants into two groups. Have the two groups sit on the chairs. The group in the outer circle will face inside, and the one in the inner circle will face outside. Each participant from one group must be paired with a participant from the other group.
2. Hand each person 10 pieces of paper and ask them to write down, individually, one core life value on each paper. These values can be friendship, family, integrity, self-esteem, kindness, altruism, respect, active listening, freedom of thought, education, health, courage, and so forth. 3. Explain that life values are the fundamental core beliefs that guide your behaviours and goals and help you measure your overall success in your life. You may help your participants by creating an extensive list of values before the exercise and having them choose from it. Let the participants choose by themselves. 4. Once all participants have written down their 10 values, ask them to discuss with the person in front of them the values they wrote down and the reasons why they have chosen those values. Give them 5 to 10 minutes. 5. Restore the silence, walk around the circles and ask all participants to remove one of their values from their “deck” and let it fall into the hat/container. Do not answer questions that may arise. 6. Ask the participants in the outer circle to stand up and move from one place on the left. They will all then face another person from the outer circle. 7. Ask the newly formed pairs to explain to each other what value they had to give away and how they would feel if that value was removed/denied from their life. Give them up to 2 minutes to share. 8. Repeat steps 5, 6 and 7 until all participants are left with only one value. 9. Call for applause as a common gratitude to the whole group for sharing their values and thoughts. |
| Tips and hints | In case of participants with special needs who cannot write down the values, ask a collaborator to help them out. |
| Safety measures | Keep the two circles of chairs at a proper distance for one row of people to stand up and move. Keep other objects in the room at least 1 meter away from the outer circle of chairs. |
| Added value | Every day, we make judgments based on our values. They inform our behaviours and understanding of right and wrong. They help shape how we think, act, and feel. And ultimately, our values help guide us to our purpose in life. What we do with our careers, our personal lives, and even our relationships rely on our values. |