Living B.A.S.I.C.
A system of core values for a meaningful life.
It was February 2018 and in a couple of months, my life would undergo the most dramatic change I could ever imagine. My beautiful wife was due to deliver our first child.
I wasn’t sure what this new addition would mean for my already hectic life. I needed a guide, a system to make sure I could continue to live a balanced and purposeful lifestyle.
If I was to set a target path for my life, I needed to discover my Core Values. These are a short list of the most important things I valued in life that would act as a personal lifestyle compass.
These values would be what I could refer to when faced with any decision that may come my way. This is also practiced by large companies around the world to help keep their employees, services, and product on brand.
The B.A.S.I.C. Core Values
One evening, while on our babymoon (yes, that’s a thing) in quaint Saratoga, NY, I sat to contemplate the topic in our hotel room and dug deep within. I came up with five core values, which I later dubbed the “B.A.S.I.C.” Core Values.
You don’t have to stick with these, but they can serve as a good starting point. We all experience life in our own unique way so it is only natural for different things to be important to each of us.
If you decide to come up with your own list of core values, you would eventually have to ask yourself; does the choice I’m making right now align with my core values, ultimately guiding me in my desired direction?
Balance
You might think of life balance as a sequence of uniform days where all the things we want to do, get done. This is rarely the case.
The truth is it’s very difficult (especially with a new baby), to lead an evenly-balanced lifestyle. Instead, strive for something more practical, and ultimately, more meaningful. Attempt to split your time between your must-dos and like-to-dos in a way that doesn’t stress you out. Stress kills.
I like to share my time between my family and home, my work, my art, Jiu-Jitsu, and my friends. Some days get more of these than others.
I believe our relationships, romantic or not, are the most valuable parts of life. Find a cadence that works for you and make sure you foster the meaningful ones.
Decide what it is you want to fit into your days and take it from there.
Don’t worry if the scale tilts too far to one side at times. Using the system laid out below you should be able to “balance” everything out in the end.
Adventure
When I say adventure, I don’t necessarily mean escaping from a huge rolling boulder while searching for lost artifacts. However, if that’s your thing, by all means, do you!
What adventure means to me is learning through experience. Do things you wouldn’t normally do in the pursuit of knowledge.
Go to the opera or eat at a restaurant you’ve never dined at before. Go watch a band you wouldn’t normally play on the radio, learn to speak a new language, or even a programming language.
The bottom line is to have good stories you can tell your grandkids. For example, I just ran my first obstacle course race which is something I never imagined myself doing. It took a long time for me to complete it. I'm not much of a runner and as much as I tried, I could not get up the rope climb.
What I did do though is obliterate my comfort zone. Do the same.
Service
This one is simple. Help people.
Help a coworker move, donate some clothes, and hold the door open for the next person.
One key here though is to make sure you take care of yourself first. You can’t pour from an empty cup.
Integrity
Super important and straightforward — be a person of your word; and for goodness’ sake, be punctual.
Creativity
This may not be on everyone’s list, but it should be.
All humans are creators. What we create can vary drastically, so just stick to your thing. Write, sew, cook, draw, build, vlog…just create as much as possible.
This core value alone is very fulfilling, especially when you start to see the results.
Now Track It!
Now that you have a list of core values as a guide, there is a simple way you can help yourself visualize and track how these values are playing a part in your life.
All you have to do is label a sheet of graph or grid paper for the month. Now create a column or row (either direction works) for each core value and on the opposite axis number the days of that month. (see below)
As the days go by, mark which of your core values you touched on that day and watch your chart fill up.
At the end of the month, audit yourself and see which of your core values could use more attention. Adjust accordingly every month to achieve as much of an evenly filled chart as possible.
This chart is a positive tool and should be used as such. That means you fill the chart as you live rather than living to fill the chart.
Do not be hard on yourself if certain columns aren’t marked. Play the long game. It’s about the bigger picture.
I hope this little tool helps you on your journey. Cheers!
Fun fact: I didn’t notice my core values created the acronym BASIC until a few weeks later. I was initially picturing it as “ICABS” or something…
