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The tiny exercise that changed my life ✍🏻
George Karaan
June 09, 2025 • Reading Time: 4 minutes
4 years ago, I sat in a small seminar room during grad school.
A professor looked around and asked:
What are your core values?
My brain went from zero to a hundred, then back to zero, in milliseconds.
I felt like a fraud. I always believed I lived by my values, but in that moment, I couldn’t name a single one with conviction.
Just as the self-critical voice in my head began to spiral, the professor spoke again:
“If you’re not sure, there are online assessments that can help.”
Relief.
That evening, I went home and took one.
A 5-10 minute test. I didn’t know it then, but it would become one of the most important things I’d ever do for myself.
What are your Core Values?
Take 15 seconds and answer this honestly:
Can you list your top 3–5 values with conviction? Without Googling or guessing?
If not, don’t feel bad. Most of us haven’t taken the time to figure them out.
But they’re there. They’ve been quietly guiding your choices, influencing what feels right, and what doesn’t.
They rarely change.
However, when you finally name them, it’s like turning on the lights in a house you’ve been living in for years.
Things make more sense.
What are Values, really?
Values aren’t goals.
Values are core beliefs about what matters most to you.
They shape your decisions, your energy, your priorities.
Ever since that little test, I’ve tried to live by the values I identified:
Health
Growth
Discipline
Curiosity
Family
They’re etched in my brain. And they’ve quietly reshaped everything, from how I spend time online to how I plan my days.
So, yes… they should shape your screen habits too.
Let me explain. 👇
Why This Matters for Screen Use
If one of your core values is Health, but you’re spending five hours a day glued to your phone, something’s out of alignment.
If you value Family, but you’re doomscrolling on the dinner table, you’re not a bad person! But your actions and values are out of sync.
The goal here isn’t guilt.
It’s awareness.
When your digital habits reflect your values, you feel more in control. More aligned. Less drained.
The fix isn’t to delete all your apps.
It’s to get clear on what you actually care about, then shape your digital life around that.
Try This Today
Take 15 minutes today to reflect on your core values. (This is a good resource)
Write them down. Keep them visible.
Use them to shape your screen habits (future emails will dive into the how)
I made this free Notion template to help you:
Inner Compass > Core Values
The page above is just one piece of a larger system I built called Life OS to organize goals, projects, habits, notes, and much more all in Notion.
It took 100+ hours to create. You get it FREE as a subscriber ($49 value).
👉 Get Life OS for Free (with demo data)
👉 Get Life OS for Free (blank)
Final Thought
When you know your values, everything else becomes easier:
Saying no.
Start there. Your digital life and well-being will thank you.
If you enjoyed this slightly longer format, let me know by hitting reply. I’d love to hear from you.
See you next week,
George
