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Crafting Your Personal Philosophy: A Journey to Self-Discovery and Clarity

Updated: Apr 29, 2024

Our personal philosophy is one of those things we tend to take for granted. It’s also something that can feel too big for words. But getting it down on paper (or Word!) is essential to our personal growth and success.

How to Craft Your Personal Philosophy: 4 Questions to Ask Yourself


If someone asked whether you have a personal philosophy, you’d probably give an enthusiastic: Yes! But if you had to write it down, you might be surprised how challenging it was.

That’s because our personal philosophy is one of those things we tend to take for granted. It’s also something that can feel too big for words. But getting it down on paper (or Word!) is essential to our personal growth and success.


What Is a Personal Philosophy?

Put simply, your personal philosophy is a statement that can help you align your thoughts with your vision, goals, and values. It’s a way to put your top priorities front and center so you can evaluate whether your thoughts and actions agree with what you believe and envision for your life.


Benefits of Crafting Your Own Personal Philosophy

Writing down your own personal philosophy statement has many benefits:

  1. Helps you live with intention and purpose

  2. Keeps you focused on your goals

  3. Keeps you accountable through a “North Star” guiding philosophy

  4. Encourages better decision-making, both big and small

  5. Builds resilience throughout life’s challenges and setbacks

Writing your personal philosophy statement can be more complicated than it sounds. But the following questions are a great way to hone in on the most essential parts of your unique personal philosophy.


Question One: What Are My Most Deeply Held Beliefs?

We all believe something. In fact, we all believe many things! While we tend to think of beliefs as positive, that isn’t always the case. For example, some people believe they are hopelessly flawed or have missed their chance at a better life.


For your personal philosophy, focus on your most deeply-rooted beliefs–two or three things you believe about yourself, the world, or your purpose here. These might be statements like, “I believe I was put here to help people, or “I believe everything in our past can be used to bring about healing–in ourselves and others.”


Question Two: What Are My Core Values?

Your core values are the things you hold dear. Research shows that people with well-established core values have stronger discipline, focus, and follow-through.

Your core values include things like:

  1. Loyalty

  2. Connection

  3. Creativity

  4. Diversity

  5. Integrity

  6. Innovation

  7. Balance

  8. Personal Development

When it comes to core values, the possibilities are nearly limitless. Try to keep your list to five. Remember, you can have many other values you hold dear that might not be your core (most essential) values.


Question Three: How Do I Measure Success?

Ask ten people how they measure success, and you might get ten very different answers! It can be easy to assume that most people share a similar definition of success, but that is because we often surround ourselves with similar people.

Consider the wide array of ways someone might define success:

  1. Success is helping my daughter be the first person in our family to attend college.

  2. Success is creating a life that isn’t busy but balanced.

  3. Success is a detachment from outcomes and enjoyment of the journey.

  4. Success is purchasing a home by the time I’m thirty.

  5. Success is working on my art three times a week.

Everyone has a different definition of success! And that means we all have different ways of measuring success. Are you going by your bank balance? Are you trying to get out of the city and live a quiet life at a slower pace?

Maybe your most significant measure of success is your mental, physical, or spiritual health–feeling and looking your best. Whatever it is for you, write it down because it’s an essential part of your personal philosophy.


Question Four: What Is My Life’s Purpose?

By the time you get to this question, you probably have a pretty good idea of the answer! That’s because your values, beliefs, and metrics for measuring success are all incredibly helpful in pointing to your purpose.

Remember, your purpose can be specific or broad:

  1. My purpose is to create provocative, artful poetry and share it with the world

  2. My purpose is to raise my child with empathy, grace, and wisdom

  3. My purpose is to help people struggling with addiction start over in life

  4. My purpose is to build homes and solutions for the unhoused

  5. My purpose is to help domestic violence survivors transition into the next stage

It’s natural to feel like you have more than one purpose. It might help to write down both a personal and professional purpose. Most likely, you’ll find that they tie in or at least complement one another nicely.


How Your Personal Philosophy Guides You

Once you’ve answered the above questions, you’re ready to combine your thoughts into a personal philosophy statement. Ideally, your statement will be a living document that changes and grows right along with you.

Have fun with it! Read your statement aloud once a month and consider whether your everyday actions, thoughts, and habits reflect your personal philosophy. If not, what might you do to bring your beliefs and your behavior into alignment? Then, note where you ARE in alignment and celebrate that win. Honoring our personal philosophy is a lifelong process–and a beautiful one!


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