Cass

And sometimes, especially in midlife, we realize we've been living for a long time according to roles, according to responsibilities and expectations.

And when have we paused to ask ourselves, what actually matters to me now?

Well, I'm suggesting that this is a perfect time in midlife, where we are right now, to stop and ask ourselves, who are we?

What is meaningful to us?

So I want to touch on why values matter.

Why am I talking about this?

Well, there's a lot of psychological research that shows when we're living in alignment with our values, we tend to experience a greater sense of meaning,

more internal contentment and a stronger sense of who we are.

So without that clarity, life can sometimes feel busy but not deeply fulfilling.

Like we're moving from one task to the next without a strong sense of why.

We're just on autopilot a lot of the time.

Whereas when our actions reflect what matters to us, there can be a greater sense of intention and a sense that your life feels more like your own.

And this is different from short-term pleasure, because we can all experience moments of pleasure, moments where we buy something new, achieving something, ticking something off a list.

But those moments can be fleeting.

Whereas values-based living is more about a deeper, steadier sense of fulfillment, a sense that my life reflects what matters to me.

So in acceptance and commitment therapy, known as ACT, it recognizes that having a sense of purpose is vital for human flourishing and that this really comes back to identifying our values.

It invites us to consider questions like, what do I want my life to be about?

What really matters to me?

There's also research from ACT that shows when people clarify their values and then take actions aligned with them, they often experience less psychological distress, greater resilience,

and more meaningful engagement with life, even when things are hard.