 Our values can affect a lot of our actions, choices and behaviour in a range of areas of our lives – from relationships to work to shopping choices. This article examines a few of the questions that often crop up when we are trying to live in line with our values - for example, how far should you go in trying to live in line with your values? How can you avoid feeling guilty that you're not doing enough? We haven't seen answers to questions like these anywhere else, so we hope that the article will be useful and make it easier for you to live both more in line with your values and happily with them, rather than feel guilty or anxious that you’re not doing enough. |
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 In our daily lives, we each receive a large number of messages from a range of sources – including our education, family, friends, the media, advertising and many other sources. These messages can influence the way we think and behave – for example, reading fashion magazines can make us feel we should be thin, or seeing adverts can make us want particular products. The resources below explain some of these influences and the effects they can have on us. One of the key skills we need in the modern world is to be able to deal with these influences, to interpret them and to work out which ones we want to accept and be influenced by, and which ones we want to ignore. See the entries within the 'Thinking skills' category in the menu on the right for ideas on how to develop these skills.
- Life² leaflet – the mind diet – these days, we’re not only eating things that are bad for our physical health, but we’re also doing things that are making our minds flabby, rather than nurturing them. The Mind Diet is a 10 step plan to feeding your head better.
- Life² booklet - the problem with consumerism – this booklet explores consumerism and its effects on us, and suggests some ways in which we can reduce its impact on our lives, so that we can live the lives we really want. Includes a useful explanation of how messages from the outside world affect us. Also available as a free MP3 audiobook.
- Adbusters – organisation campaigning to expose and reduce the effects of advertising on people. |
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The Good Stuff section of our site is a knowledge base that provides a range of links, videos, articles and other items that provide some of the key ideas, advice, information and skills that people need to live enlightened, happy and meaningful lives in the modern world. Click here to see a summary of the resources within it.
Click on an item in the 'Categories' menu on the right to access all the entries and resources within each category. Use the 'Tags' section on the bottom right to locate individual topics and entries.
The Good Stuff section aims to give people an accessible overview of some key aspects of the world, which will provide them with perspective on their own lives and information to help them make decisions on various aspects of life – for example, videos on the size of the universe. There are also many ideas and pieces of accessible information about how to live in line with your values and how to live the life you really want - from courses to help you think about where you are in life and how you want to live through to websites to help you find your nearest farmers market.
These resources enable us to bring in ideas and resources from other places – perhaps because they present a topic in a particularly interesting way or offer a clever and unusual solution to a problem. They also include a new series of publications by Life² - a range of free articles we have written to introduce new ideas or bring clarity to particular issues.
The resources are split into the following categories:
1. Understanding concepts and ideas – we feel it’s important for people to be able to understand and navigate their way around the concepts and ideas we use in daily life – from political views to ethical values. The entries in this section aim to help people to make sense of these concepts and ideas.
2. Understanding the world – we also feel it’s important for people to gain perspective about some basic aspects of their history and existence - from our place in the universe to how much we earn in relation to others. The entries in this section provide this information in a meaningful and accessible way – as an overview, to help you get an overall perspective on each topic.
3. Thinking skills – each of us needs a range of skills to deal with the complexity and pressures of the modern world, but we aren't taught many of them as well as we could be - from critical thinking to the art of living well. The entries in this section help people to understand and develop these skills.
4. How to live well – much of our work focuses on how to live a more enlightened life – one with greater well-being, happiness, meaning and one in which you understand and live in line with your values. The entries in this section are a mixture of guidance on the art of living and practical ideas and signposting on how to make the most of your life and how to live in a way that’s consistent with your values.
We also have a Life² Library in which we recommend further reading on various subjects, plus a News section with any other interesting items we want to show you. Have a look around!
The Good Stuff section is ever-expanding and is a work in progress. Click here to see a summary of the resources within it. We’d love to hear your ideas on other things we should include – email us at
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if you have any suggestions. |
 Most people want to feel that they can make a difference to the world - whether it is having a say in the way their society is run, campaigning for a better environment or simply ensuring that there are no potholes in their road and their kids have decent schools to go to. The resources in this section give you some tools to help you have a say and make a difference to your society.
- Voting – one of the most important things you can do to have a say in the way your society is run. About my vote is a site set up by the Electoral Commission to give some background as to how to vote, how to decide who to vote for and why it’s important to vote.
- Write to your MP – a site enabling you to send a message directly to your MP (about any topic) with the click of a button. This is just one of several sites developed by MySociety, who aim to develop tools to help people have greater say in politics – check out their site for details of others, including Fix My Street.
- How powerful is your constituency? - an index of how much power we each have as citizens in our communities. Watch the video first then check out your constituency on the table below it.
- Sites to help you have your say – there are many sites to help you get your voice heard on political issues. Some of the best include Avazz, 38 Degrees and Our world our say. |
 Whether we realise it or not, we get involved in politics and political views every day of our lives – from discussing issues with our friends to paying our taxes. This entry provides an overview of politics as an issue, the world and UK political systems and some basic political facts, including how recent governments have spent our taxes. Also see the (soon to be available) ‘Politics’ entry in the ‘Understanding concepts and ideas’ category for some background on different political views and ‘Taking action – seeking change’ in the ‘How to live well’ section for how you can get involved in political decision making.
- What is politics? – a brief explanation of the topic and its history
- Types of political system – a list of some of the main types of government – from democracy to anarchy. Click on each entry for an explanation.
- Political history – see this link for a very brief political history of the world. For more detail, read ‘A history of the world’ by JM Roberts.
- The UN – check out the UN site for some interesting information on world politics and the systems that govern us – for example, read the Universal Declaration of Human Rights or the Millennium Development Goals.
- Where does my money go – an accessible way to see how recent governments have spent our money
- How Britain has changed in the noughties – some figures to show how the country’s situation changed from the start to the end of the last decade |
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