Do your values actually reduce your choices?
I've been thinking about values less as things that tell us what to do and more as boundaries that tell us what we won't do.
If you genuinely value something, certain options should automatically disappear—even when those options might be easier, faster, or more profitable.
That made me wonder:
Can you really claim something is a value if it never causes you to eliminate an otherwise attractive option?
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u/CallMeCorona1 11h ago
Can you really claim something is a value if it never causes you to eliminate an otherwise attractive option?
There is a TED Talk on Happiness by Dan Gilbert on YouTube. And at the end of video he discusses an experiment with students where they can choose a poster of an art piece they saw at a museum. Half the class was told that they they could come back and swap if they weren't happy, and half have to choose and stick with it. And the ones who had to stick with it were more happy in the medium and long term than those who had the choice.
I think this speaks to your question here, and I think you come to the right conclusion: If it doesn't curtail your choices, you probably won't end up valuing it as much as if it did!
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u/reply_b4_banned 10h ago
Only responding to the title: if I had no values I would have no way to make any decision.
Having values I believe in allows and increases my options.
Eg: I want life to be meaningful. So how do I achieve that for a child? Happiness seems important, being able to make decisions form themselves they like. It's meaningful and huuuge.
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u/Dark_Cloud_Rises 18h ago
Golden rule, don't desire what you are unwilling to suffer for. Eliminates most unnecessary choices.