Values Snapshot
You’re a Pioneer
Curious. Independent. Guided by meaning, ethics, and what feels true to you.
You’re a Pioneer
Curious. Independent. Guided by meaning, ethics, and what feels true to you.
What This Snapshot is telling you.
This Values Snapshot isn’t a diagnosis or a personality label.
It doesn’ttell you how to live or who to be.
It explains how you experience the world - what fulfils you psychologically, what gives you energy, and what matters most to you at this stage of your life.
Values operate quietly in the background. They shape how situations feel, how decisions land , and whether life feels coherent or draining, often long before we conscously name what's going on.
This snapshot offers a clearer language for understanding that experience.
Values and how we experience life
We all don’t all experience life in the same way.
We each make sense of the world through a values lens
— the way we interpret what matters, what feels right, and what feels satisfying or meaningful.
Values research* identifies three distinct ways people experience the world — often described as different worldviews. These worldviews reflect different deep psychological needs we all have, that shape how people experience life.
All three exist across society, families, relationships, and workplaces. None is better than another.
They are simply different ways of experiencing the same world.
This is why two people can be in the same situation — at home, at work, or in a relationship — and walk away feeling very differently about it. Not because one is right and the other is wrong.
But because they are responding to different inner needs.
How values shape experience.
Some people experience life through a strong need for stability, familiarity, and belonging.
Others are more attuned to progress, achievement, and recognition.
As a Pioneer, your experience of life is shaped by a different set of deep psychological needs.
Pioneer needs are centred around:
- meaning and purpose
- ethics and integrity
- authenticity
- growth and understanding
This doesn’t make you more intense, idealistic, or "hard work".
It simply means that what fulfils you — psychologically and emotionally — is different.
That’s not a limitation or a value judgement.
It’s simply how your inner motivation system works.
As a Pioneer, this is how life often feels.
You’re likely to feel most fulfilled when:
- what you’re doing feels meaningful, not just necessary
- your choices align with your values and sense of integrity
- your environment feels ethically sound and emotionally honest
- you’re learning, evolving, or contributing in a way that feels true to you
You may struggle to stay engaged with:
- roles that feel hollow or performative
- expectations that conflict with your sense of integrity
- routines that leave no room for depth, reflection or growth
This isn’t dissatisfaction for no good reason. It's insight into what genuinely matters to you p and what you need to feel fulfilled.
Why values differences matter.
You don’t experience life on your own.
The people around you — partners, colleagues, family
— may be responding through a different values lens, even when you’re facing the same situation.
That’s why:
- change can feel exciting to some and unsettling to others
- reassurance can matter more to you than others realise
- misunderstandings can arise despite good intentions
What feels stabilising or comforting to you may not register in the same way for someone else — and vice versa.
It’s not about who’s right or wrong.
It’s about different psychological needs shaping how people make sense of the same situation.
The three values worldviews
Values research* describes three distinct values worldviews, often referred to as:
Settler, Prospector, and Pioneer.
These terms don’t describe personality types or life stages.
They describe different sets of deep psychological needs that shape how people experience life, interpret situations, and decide what matters.
The table below shows how these three values worldviews tend to experience the same aspects of life differently.
There’s no hierarchy here. None is better or worse.
They are simply different psychological priorities shaping how life is experienced.
The table below contrasts life attributes across Settler, Prospector and Pioneer Groups. it illustrates their very distinct worldviews for illustrative purposes.
This is pioneer:
| Life attributes: | Settler | Prospector | Pioneer (You) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Core need | Safety and belonging | Recognition and success | Meaning and connection |
| Main question | Is it safe? | Am I winning? | Does it feel true? |
| The right way to be | Keep things stable | Be admired and successful | Stay curious and open |
| Doing the right thing means… | Follow the rules | Do what’s effective or popular | Act with honesty and ethics |
| At work | Keep it steady | Hit goals, show results | Try new things, explore better ways |
| Preferred brands | Traditional, trusted | High-status, visible | Thoughtful, ethical, useful |
| Who they listen to | Family, familiar voices | Experts, influencers | Experience, trusted peers |
| I really don’t like… | Feeling unsafe | Failing | Being bored |
| When there’s a problem… | “They should fix it.” | “Let’s fix it fast.” | “Let’s figure it out together.” |
| View of bad things | “It always happens to us.” | “I’d rather not think about it.” | “We’ll work through it.” |
| Why they buy things | Need or habit | To reward themselves | Because it matters or intrigues them |
| What they want most | Stability | Status | Purpose |
| Would like more of… | Familiar comfort | Progress and growth | Connection and ideas |
| Identity comes from… | Roots and belonging | Achievement and image | Beliefs and integrity |
Making sense of what you’ve just seen
Seeing these differences side by side often explains things people have felt for years but couldn’t quite put into words.
It helps make sense of why as a Pioneer :
- certain conversations feel surprisingly difficult
- compromise can feel uncomfortable even when you’re trying
- situations that seem “fine” to others don’t sit easily with you
This isn’t about incompatibility or failure.
It’s about different psychological needs responding to the same reality.
For many Pioneers, this is the moment they realise:
“I’ve been reacting from my values — even when I didn’t know that’s what was happening.”
That recognition alone can shift how you understand past experiences — and how you approach what comes next.
The hidden influence of values
Your values don’t switch on and off depending on circumstances.
They are always at work — quietly shaping how life feels to you, how situations land, and how decisions register internally.
When your lived experience aligns with your values, life tends to feel:
- energising
- coherent
- purposeful
Effort feels worthwhile. Choices feel internally consistent. What you’re doing makes sense to you.
When that alignment is missing, the impact isn’t always obvious at first. For a Pioneer, when needs around meaning, integrity, authenticity, and growth aren’t being met for too long, it doesn’t stay theoretical.
It can show up as:
- emotional reactivity or irritability you can’t quite place
- a sense of flatness, grief, or quiet dissatisfaction
- questioning decisions without knowing how to change direction
- feeling capable and responsible — yet subtly disengaged
- a growing sense that life looks fine on the outside, but feels misaligned on the inside
This doesn’t mean something is wrong with you.
It means an important psychological need isn’t being met — and that matters.
Why this insight matters
Understanding your values doesn’t require blowing your life up or starting over.
It gives you language for what you’re already experiencing — and permission to take those signals seriously.
When Pioneer values are brought back into alignment:
- energy returns
- decisions feel clearer
- effort leads somewhere that feels meaningful
Purpose stops feeling abstract and you feel in the flow ... happy !
You’re no longer trying to push past discomfort or explain it away — you’re able to understand what it’s pointing to.
This is where values move from being interesting information to something genuinely life-shaping.
Want to learn more?
This snapshot gives you a literal 'snapshot' of your Pioneer Values — not the full picture.
If you’re curious to go deeper, you have two options.
Both are simply ways to help you explore further 'what makes you tick' from the inside out.
A Midlife Values Q&A Chat
A focused, personal conversation where you can ask questions and explore what this means for you.
The Pioneer Values Deep Dive Report
A detailed report with further insight and data into how your values shape your decisions, energy, and sense of fulfilment.