A glass ceiling of your mind – smash through it using Values!
A glass ceiling of the mind is there to be smashed through. Yet, sometimes we just don’t feel we have what it takes to do that. What is that resistance and how can we overcome it?
Values and values levels are studied at Master Practitioner, but I thought you might like some insight into how your thinking, your beliefs and motivation are all linked together through your values.
Values are what you find important, not what you like. For example, you may hate your job, but it provides an important source of income for you. Values Levels describe the way of thinking and the belief system that help us to understand what is really going on inside a person’s mind, how it is that they act in a certain manner and how they are likely to react in a given situation. They give insight into the limitations – the glass ceiling – of that Level.
There exist 8 Values Levels, with 1 being the least complex and 8 being the most flexible and complex thinker. That doesn’t mean that we pigeon-hole people, however, as no one Values Level is better than another, as we’ll see, each one has a very positive set of values that ensure we can operate in a particular environment.
Values are not related to intelligence, but to your environment and to the complexity of your thinking. We may operate a high level of complex thought, but when challenged, in that environment, we assume lower levels. How many times, when stressed or tired are we liable to be snappy or unreasonable? Our ability to be flexible in our responses has been lost and in that moment, our Values Level has sunk down a peg or two.
Let’s have a brief look at the different levels and how they relate to the original questions about achieving your goals and getting motivated.
VL 1 – Very few people on the planet are at VL 1. It’s the VL of survival. The thinking is consumed by the desire for food, shelter, sleep and safety. It may be a homeless person. It is the individual within a remote tribe, without western influence.
VL 2 – This is person respects the ‘chief’ or ‘head of the clan’. They feel safe as a tribe, as a clan; they enjoy being part of a group, with responsibility given to a chief. Few people are limited to this VL, although some people have yet to fully complete it. This is the person who will not accept your ideas, but only those of their tribal chief, whether that’s a boss or a admin of a group on Facebook, it’s their accepted expert. VL 2 thinking is very superstitious, if you have a lucky charm, brave pants or crystals for healing, those are VL 2 thinking.
VL 3 – this VL needs instant gratification and will do anything to get it! They may use force or violence to get it and they have no guilt for lying, cheating or stealing, they look upon VL 2 (and VL 4) with utter contempt. They can be found as runners for the Mafia, as well as in places where you have the opportunity to win – the military, banking, politics, corporations! They have no time for losers and no compassion for them; it’s a dog-eat-dog world out there! Think Napoleon or Hitler, they can be charismatic, but like a rabid dog are ready to pounce when necessary; be cautious of these people, they bite.
VL 4 – this VL bring back compassion and control. They abide by their set of rules, their book, be that the Bible, the Koran, the manifesto, the code of conduct. All religions are VL 4 thinking, as are communism, fascism, environmentalism, most –isms! They follow their guidelines and include education systems. VL 4 prefers delayed gratification: do good work now and you’ll be repaid later (you’ll get to Heaven, you’ll get promoted, you’ll finish your college course……).
VL 5 – those in this level are the entrepreneurs, salespeople, scientist; they are the Gordon Geckos of the 1980s, they love commerce, making money, scientific discoveries (to make money out of), technology (to help sales). They may bend the rules to make a profit, they believe in ‘snooze and you lose’, but unlike VL 3, they do have a conscience. Sometimes. Most governments ate VL 4-5.
VL 6 –these thinkers do not adhere to a book, like VL 4, they reject the rule book for a freer way (e.g., they reject their parents’ Christianity and substitute New Age thinking instead). They are caring, spiritual people, yet extremely judgmental against people who do not believe. They are vegans, vegetarians, save the whale, peace and environment campaigners. They may be the burnout VL 5 stockbroker who is now reacting against their old materialistic ways.
VL 7 – this level transcends all those below, very few people on our planet are at VL 7. Judgmental VL 6 is left behind, materialism is gone, they have no care for what others think about them; they enjoy complex problems and problem solving. They thrive on paradoxes and are thought of as walking an untrodden path, they are very individualistic in their thinking, they would like to change the world, but find it hard to find others of similar high level thinking.
VL 8 – a handful of people have achieved this level! They think globally for the success of the planet as a whole. They no longer pursue paradoxes, they have no time for such trivia! They think of unity and the common consciousness of all living things.
For people who like to think about thinking, like NLPers. It’s interesting to know that to ascend to Values Levels above where our thinking is now, we have to go through, and complete, the Values Levels below. For example, many NLPers fall into thinking they are VL 6, however, they may not have fully completed VL 5, so are caught in the push-pull of both Values Levels. This is the person who would like to be a business person, but doesn’t charge enough to make a profit. They have too much VL 6 thinking and haven’t completed VL 5 yet.
Which brings me back to my question, What if you knew how to achieve your goals with the least possible resistance? What if you could smash through the glass ceiling of your mind? Knowing your VL in detail enables you to take responsibility to evolve through the Values Levels, removing resistance to achieving your goals. Each VL has its own set of ways to achieve things, yet what if that was your sticking point? Your glass ceiling? The way in which your VL is motivated, may be in conflict with what you want to achieve. By progressing through the VLs, you expand you dimensionality and see things from a perspective where more is possible and all is possible!
Want to learn more? We talk about Values Levels and Coaching clients through VLs at Master Coach Practitioner training. Without exception, completion of my Master Prac has led to VL 7 thinking in my Coaches, something they should be very proud of!
Fancy an in depth read? Values and the Evolution of Consciousness by Adriana James is an exhaustively researched book on the topic Click here for more information.