Why moral compass is critical and How to create your moral compass
“No random actions, none not based on underlying principles.”
What you will learn in this post:
But what exactly is a moral compass? Why does it matter?
A Framework for Moral Compass
Exercise: Create your own Moral Compass
When I arrived in Melbourne, Australia, I was 21. I was a young pup exploring the world down under with a desire to complete my master’s degree and make something out of myself. I attended night classes. One day, during a group study session, a girl asked me what I wanted to become by age 40. The question was aimed at my professional ambition.
However, I immediately thought of what kind of ‘person’ I wanted to be at age 40. Then, it struck me that I didn’t even know what kind of person I was then. What drove me to gain higher education? Who were my ideals? Why don’t I drink? My brain flooded with questions. I spent the next few weeks searching for answers.
It was then that I discovered the idea of a ‘Moral Compass.’ A moral compass is a reference guide, a code of conduct, so to speak. It is a list or framework that encapsulates your ideals so that you can compare your current behavior and decision-making to them. This is a natural recurring gap analysis that reveals which areas need focus or growth for you to live your ideals.
But what exactly is a moral compass?
A moral compass refers to an individual's internalized sense of right and wrong, which guides their ethical decisions and behavior. It is a metaphorical tool or framework that helps a person navigate ethical dilemmas and judge what is morally acceptable or unacceptable.
A moral compass is shaped by various factors, including cultural upbringing, personal values, religious or philosophical beliefs, social norms, and life experiences. It provides a framework for evaluating and determining the morality of actions and allows individuals to make choices based on principles they consider to be morally right or wrong.
Having a strong moral compass means being aware of and committed to upholding certain moral principles and values, such as honesty, fairness, compassion, justice, integrity, and respect for others. It helps make ethical decisions that align with deeply held beliefs and values, even when faced with difficult choices or external pressures.
However, it's important to note that people's moral compasses can vary due to cultural, religious, and personal differences. What one person considers morally acceptable may differ from another person's perspective. This is why ethical debates and discussions exist, as different individuals or groups may have different interpretations of what is morally right or wrong in specific situations.
Ultimately, a moral compass serves as an internal reference point that guides individuals in making ethical choices and leads them to act in accordance with their personal sense of morality.
Why should you develop a moral compass?
Developing your moral compass is critical if you wish to understand why your life is the way it is. This will help you remove what/who is not helping and do more of what is working.
As the age-old adage tells us - “Know Thyself.”
Only when you know yourself are you truly living and in control. Otherwise, you live life being jerked around without understanding the core reasons for your decision-making. This idea is the center point of philosophy and modern-day therapy for a reason. This is why religious frameworks provide their version of a moral compass, the Ten Commandments, for example.
The most encouraging factor is that once you do this exercise, you won’t ever go back. What you will learn about yourself will excite you and arm you to handle life and people better. It will unlock the cheat code of this game we call life, and you will finally be playing this game as player 1.
My Framework for Moral Compass:
I categorize my moral compass into 4 sections with one bonus/overarching section.
Beliefs
Values
Influences
Experiences
* The Dark Side
Beliefs are the captain of your ship.
Beliefs are vastly what makes up for your behavior. These are the things you believe to be true about yourself and the world around you. Beliefs are the reason why you make the decisions you make.
We inherit most of our beliefs from our parents, childhood influences, or exposures. They can also come from the movies you watch, books/comics you read, significant life experiences, traumas, major events, or role models/ideals. Beliefs uncover the deepest part of our subconscious. Beliefs reveal our inner self, which is really running the show.
Note, however, that beliefs are not permanent. We often shed old beliefs, reiterate old ones, and obtain new ones. Our culture, life experiences, and influences play a major role in this. Hence, it’s critical that we are cognizant of the company we keep and how/where we spend our time. It is equally critical that our beliefs are reconciled, questioned, and criticized often. We must understand why we believe what we believe.
Examples of beliefs :
Beliefs about money - is it the root of all evil? Is money easy to make and keep?
Beliefs about people - Most people are untrustworthy and unreliable. People are selfish and out for themselves or most people try to do the right thing.
Beliefs about work - Work is something we must endure. Find something that pays well and endure it for 8 hours a day.
Or, Work is where I put my skills to the test and get rewarded proportionate to my effort. It doesn’t have to be my passion, but it doesn’t have to be miserable, either.
Values
Stoics may have referred to values as virtues. I see values as actionable, and more measurable delineation of our beliefs.
Values are deeply held beliefs and principles that guide a person’s attitudes, behaviors, and decisions. They represent what someone considers to be important and desirable in life. Values influence how people perceive the world, interact with others, and prioritize their actions.
Values can be broadly categorized into different domains, including:
Personal Values: These are related to an individual's character, self-development, and personal well-being. Examples - honesty, integrity, authenticity, resilience, self-discipline, and personal growth.
Interpersonal Values: These values relate to how individuals interact with and treat others. They include kindness, respect, empathy, compassion, fairness, cooperation, and tolerance.
Family Values: These values pertain to the importance of family relationships, unity, and support. They may include love, loyalty, trust, commitment, and filial piety.
Social Values: These values concern broader societal norms, principles, and ideals. They encompass concepts such as justice, equality, freedom, human rights, democracy, environmental sustainability, and social responsibility.
Professional Values: These values are specific to a person's work or profession. They may include professionalism, integrity, teamwork, accountability, innovation, and continuous learning.
Values, much like beliefs, are often acquired and shaped through various influences, such as cultural upbringing, family and social environment, education, religious or philosophical beliefs, and personal experiences. They form an individual's moral framework, providing a basis for making choices, resolving ethical dilemmas, and defining one's identity and purpose in life.
While values are deeply personal, societies and communities often share common values that help establish social norms and standards of behavior. However, it is important to recognize that values can vary between individuals and cultures, and conflicts can arise when different value systems collide.
The last two pieces that constitute a moral compass are your experiences and your influences. Experience is not what happens to us (which is not in our control) but our perception of the experience. How did we translate and amalgamate the events into our lives? Perception is something we can control.
Influence refers to the ability to have an effect or impact on the thoughts, beliefs, behaviors, or actions of other individuals or groups. It involves the power to shape or sway someone's opinions, decisions, or attitudes. For instance, Andrew Tate is a big influence on young men these days. If you are one of them, then chances are that you are simply inheriting his beliefs. You are choosing and permitting the influence to occur. But, rather than blindly adopting someone else’s thinking, one must question and scrutinize their ideas. Try to understand the pros and cons of an ideology or a belief. If you choose to implement them, then monitor your experience because it will either solidify the belief or you learn that it is not serving you. In either case, make a conscious, well-reasoned choice and be prepared to recalibrate.
The Dark Side:
As we look to construct our ideal self, our moral compass, we cannot ignore our own dark side. The term "dark side" generally refers to the negative or undesirable aspects of someone’s personality or behavior. It encompasses traits or tendencies that are harmful, destructive, unethical, or morally wrong. Here are a few examples - aggression, manipulative behavior, violence, narcissism, envy, overzealous competitiveness, etc. If we are not aware of our own dark side, then it will ambush all our plans to live by our code of conduct. I recommend reading Robert Greene’s work on understanding the dark side better.
Exercise: Create your own Moral Compass
Write down your beliefs. If it is overwhelming, then pick a macro-level topic and write down 3 beliefs for the topic. For example, what are your 3 beliefs around money?
Here are a few other examples to get you started:
What is your worldview? Is this Universe/people trying to get you, or is everything happening for your good even if you don’t understand it all?
What are your beliefs about relationships?
Do you believe your childhood was traumatic? If yes, who do you blame and why?
Do you believe that you have complete free will, or is there an element of Divine governance?
Do you believe in a savior or believe in only yourself? You either make it happen or not.
Do you believe in God and a judgment day at the end of this life (giving you a sense of accountability), or do you believe in what you see here and now?
Do you believe in karma - what goes around comes around or that you can do harm to others with no karmic consequence.
Do you believe in social conformity and social constructs such as family, religion, and marriage, or do you believe that framework is outdated?
Do you believe in your country’s justice system and societal structure? Do you believe your country or this world is doomed, or do you feel optimistic about the future?
Do you believe in technology or see it as a threat, i.e., artificial intelligence?
Do you believe in living it up or conservative living?
What are your beliefs about money? Is it evil, something that is always lacking and causing issues, or is money an instrument for access and comfort? Do you believe in saving money or spending over your budget to portray your dream life?
Repeat the same exercise for values. Calibrate your perception of life experiences and manage your influences.
Write down your top 3 influences right now and question if they are serving you or hurting you.
Hope this helped.
Much Love
PM
