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Ten Values Associated With Well-Being Phillip Moffitt

At the peak of his
SUBMITTED BY PHILLIP MOFFITT ON DECEMBER 8, 2016 - 1:02PM career, former CEO
and Editor-in-chief of
Just as we have outer priorities in our lives that guide us in our decision-making and
Esquire magazine,
setting goals, we have inner priorities, too. The values that we live by can be
Phillip Moffitt, traded
considered our inner priorities and they guide us in how we implement our outer
in his worldly
priorities, the areas of our lives to which we choose to devote time. In my
aspirations to explore
experience, people who pay attention to the inner, can be more effective in the
the inner life. He
outer realm. In our daily practice of refraining from thoughts, words, and actions
subsequently founded
that cause suffering, we can find support in adopting a commitment to core values
the Life Balance
that nurture and deepen our sense of internal and physical well-being. Here are ten
Institute and now
values I find particularly beneficial to developing an enduring sense of well-being.
teaches vipassana
meditation with an emphasis on living the
dharma in daily life. Phillip is a co-guiding
teacher at Spirit Rock Meditation Center and the
1. Be truthful in what you say (wise speech) and speak with wise compassion. This
author of Emotional Chaos to Clarity and Dancing
does not mean that you are always “nice” but that when you have something
with Life.
difficult to say to someone, you express it with as much kindness as possible.
What Is Dharma Wisdom?
2. Be genuine and authentic. We so often protect the “false pride” of the ego or else
“package ourselves” for acceptance, approval, or popularity and this is not a winning
strategy for well-being. Of course, we use common sense in our words and actions
in regards to safety and being effective, and we maintain boundaries and dignity,
but we do not employ pretend words and actions to make our way in the world.
When you feel authentic to yourself, you are most empowered to genuinely affect
people and situations that you can affect, and to accept those situations when you Emotional Chaos to Clarity
simply cannot affect what happens. How to Live More Skillfully,
Make Better Decisions, and
3. Be kind in all that you do and say. Kindness is not contingent on outer Find Purpose in Life
circumstances, thus even if you have to be firm with someone or disappoint them,
you can still act with the greatest kindness possible. Do not confuse kindness with Emotional Chaos to
“niceness” a social interaction artifact, which has positive attributes and can be Clarity can be purchased in
sincere or not, but is often not genuinely kind. bookstores and on the
Internet. It is available in
4. Be compassionate to those who are in pain and/or experiencing difficulty. hardcover, paperback,
Compassion is contingent on what’s happening. e-book, and audiobook.

5. Act and make choices in terms of relatedness. Know that you are part of
PREVIEW
something larger. For example, when you are driving in heavy traffic, know that you
are part of the traffic and not separate from it. Or, in the workplace, maintain an
awareness that you are dependent on others and others are dependent on you. FREE STUDY
Having a sense of your connection to others breaks the aloneness that’s part of our
GUIDE
existential quandary as human beings.

6. Honor you own creativity. Pay attention to what you care about and align your Receive Free Weekly Teachings based on
outer priorities accordingly. Honoring yourself can look like not doing work that you Emotional Chaos to Clarity
hate, not staying in a situation where you do not share the values of the people
around you, or deciding against doing something because it’s in conflict with your SUBSCRIBE
inner values.

7. Maintain a personalized life balance such that you primarily spend time on areas
you care about. This requires that you know what matters to you and that be
absolutely honest as to how you are spending your time and life energy. Your time
and your life energy are two separate items. Time is easily understood; life energy
is your inner engine, and is independent of time such that even a small amount of
Dancing with Life
time doing something that is somehow at odds with your heart can greatly drain Buddhist Insights for
your life energy, whereas spending a lot of time doing something that you sincerely Finding Meaning and in
care about may drain very little life energy. Everyday Life.

8. Continue to learn and grow (personally and/or professionally) at every stage of Dancing with Life is
life. People who are growing tend to thrive. This is one key to sustainable leadership available in hardcover,

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Ten Values Associated With Well-Being | Dharma Wisdom http://dharmawisdom.org/blogs/skillful-living/ten-values-associ...

for those who are already successful and is an essential aspect of becoming paperback, e-book, and audiobook.
successful. Success does not just mean worldly success. Being a life long learner
applies equally to your relationship, to being a parent, to being a good friend, to LEARN MORE
being effective in maintaining your own well being.

9. Be present in your life moment to moment. I do not mean this only in the sense FREE STUDY
of practicing mindfulness in daily life which is, of course, very important. But I also GUIDE
mean be present in the sense of showing up wholeheartedly for your life, whether is
be pleasant or unpleasant; this is your life at this moment. This means not being on
Receive Free Weekly Teachings based on
autopilot for if you are on autopilot, then you don’t get to live your values and you
Dancing with Life
don’t have choice. Being on autopilot puts you in reactive mode.

10. Take responsibility for your body and make choices that support your body’s SUBSCRIBE
health and well-being. This includes choices in the areas of diet, exercise, sleep,
relaxation, play, and health maintenance. If you wish to further your investigation of
clarifying your values, you can find a worksheet on this topic here.

1 Comment Dharma Wisdom ! Ricardo Lindquist

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Join the discussion…

Yvonne marroquin • 3 years ago
This is a great article! Im interested in achieving a balanced life and this
was very helpful! Can you recommend any podcasts to listen to?
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Phillip Moffitt's blog

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