Sometimes we feel overwhelmed with all our options for discovering who we are. That overwhelm can keep us from even getting started. All we need to know are five fundamental facets of the disco ball that we are. Then we can move into any change we want to make.

1) What pulls you forward

We each have a core challenge that pulls us forward. 

Your core challenge is pulling you forward when you are searching for something.

Your core challenge is pulling you forward when you feel driven to do something ever better and ever more perfectly.

Your core challenge is pulling you forward when you continue to attempt something despite continuing to fail.

Tune in to your core challenge to set your course.

2) What you cannot help but do

We each have an essential value we cannot help but provide.

Our colleagues highlight our essential value when their kudos tend towards a particular theme.

Our friends highlight our essential value when they consistently ask us for a certain kind of help.

When our family laughingly complains that we “are doing it again,” we may be inflicting our essential value.

Leverage your essential value to move forward.

3) How you maintain alignment

We each have a set of principles that tells us when we are getting off course.

We often feel triggered or unexpectedly angry when someone violates one or more of our principles.

When we feel anxious or unaccountably nervous, we are out of alignment with at least one of our principles.

We are reasonably aligned with our principles when we feel happy and content.

Consult your principles to course-correct as you move.

4) Where you center yourself

We each have a specific environment that centers us.

When a particular color, texture, or sound always brings you joy, it is centering you.

Your favorite spots often are favorites because something about them centers you.

When you feel safe and comfortable around a person or place, something about that person or place centers you.

Create a space that centers you as you move.

5) How you manage your impact

We each have specific values we use to manage our impact.

When others comment that you are “always so <thing>,” they may be commenting on one of your values.

You may be experiencing a lack of one or more of your values when someone’s behavior puts you off.

When you find yourself continually impressed by how someone presents themselves, they may be demonstrating one or more of your values.

Use your values to optimize the effects of your movement.

Focus on these five facets

Avoid overwhelm as you discover more about who you are by focusing on these five facets:

• Your core challenge
• Your essential value
• Your principles
• Your centering space
• Your values

Use these as you decide what to do. 

Use these as you do that. 

And, use these as you reflect on what results. 

Understanding these five facets will help you move into change.