Discover What Matters: How to Use a Values Sort to Align Your Brand, Strategy, and Purpose
As a coach stepping into business for yourself or refining your personal brand, one of the most important steps you can take isn't designing a logo or launching a website—it’s clarifying your core values. Your values are the foundation for everything that follows: your brand identity, the services you offer, your ideal client base, and the strategy that helps you grow.
Yet many coaches skip this step or treat it like a surface-level exercise. In truth, values work is the compass that keeps your business aligned with your purpose and your integrity—especially when the road gets bumpy.
What Are Core Values and Why Do They Matter?
Core values are the deeply held beliefs that guide your behavior, decisions, and sense of purpose. They aren’t just aspirational words—they represent what’s non-negotiable to you in how you live, work, and serve others.
When you're clear on your values:
You attract aligned clients who resonate with what you stand for.
You design offerings that feel energizing and sustainable.
You create a filter for decision-making that prevents burnout and misalignment.
You build a brand that feels authentic—because it is.
For coaches, your brand is your values in action.
Why Do a Values Sort?
A values sort is a simple but powerful tool to help you prioritize what matters most to you from a wide set of options. It’s especially helpful when you’re:
Starting a new coaching business or redefining your niche
Creating a brand from scratch or evolving an existing one
Feeling stuck, scattered, or unsure what direction to take next
Seeking a more aligned way to structure your time, energy, and services
Think of it as sorting the signal from the noise.
How to Do a Values Sort Activity
Gather a List of Values
Use a comprehensive resource like Personal Values or a values card deck to explore a full spectrum of values organized by categories such as safety, belonging, growth, and self-actualization.Narrow It Down
Start with 40–60 values and narrow them to your top 10–15. From there, aim for a core 3–5 that feel essential to your identity and business. You narrow down by sorting rapidly into categories (strongly value, somewhat value, don’t value). Repeat this process several times, eliminating cards each round, until you reach your core list.If you are struggling to refine: What themes or patterns are you seeing in the values you strongly associate with? Is there a higher category you could assign that encompasses a set of values you feel strongly about? This higher-level value might be a better value to be in your top three. By sorting into categories, you might see the true trend unfolding.
Reflect Deeply
Ask yourself:When have I felt most alive and aligned? What values were present?
When have I felt frustrated or drained? What values were being violated?
Which values must be honored for me to do my best work?
Use Them Actively
Your values aren’t just a worksheet—they should be visible in your:Website copy and visual identity
Service design and pricing structure
Brand voice and client experience
Boundaries, partnerships, and time management
Long-term goals and vision
Values as Strategic Anchors
Once identified, your values become more than a feel-good list—they become a strategic framework.
Brand Alignment
Values clarify how you want to show up. For example, if “creativity” is a core value, then rigid, cookie-cutter services won’t feel right. You may prioritize custom solutions, playful language, or co-created offers.Offer Design
Your values help shape your offerings. If “freedom” is a key value, you might avoid tightly structured programs in favor of flexible coaching packages or asynchronous support.Decision Filters
When faced with new opportunities, use your values to assess alignment. Does this project or partnership uphold what matters most—or does it compromise it?Client Fit
Values help you define who your work is for and who it’s not. You’ll start attracting people who believe what you believe—and that makes marketing, coaching, and referrals much easier.Course Correction
When you're off track, your values are guideposts that help you recalibrate. They provide honest feedback: are you still on the path that reflects who you are and what you're here to do?
Why This Matters Right Now
If you’re in the early stages of building your coaching practice or personal brand, values work isn’t optional—it’s essential.
Too often, new entrepreneurs jump into branding, websites, or offers without a solid foundation. They end up mimicking what they see others doing or chasing shiny strategies that don’t fit.
By anchoring in your values first, you create from a place of clarity, purpose, and alignment. This not only protects your energy—it builds a business that’s resilient, adaptable, and genuinely impactful.
Ready to Begin?
Start your values sort now using the free tool at https://personalvalu.es. For a deeper dive, I love this values card deck. I use it with clients frequently.
Take your time. Sit with your top values. Then ask yourself: How can I bring more of these into my business—today, this month, and this year?
Because a brand built on values isn’t just powerful—it’s sustainable, magnetic, and uniquely yours.
👉 Want more of this? Join Branding for Coaches, where we take topics like this and explore them together through guided conversation, coaching prompts, and real-world application to help you grow your personal brand with clarity and confidence.
