What are Personal Standards?

Our personal standards are a set of attitudes and behaviours that we choose to follow. They are mainly based on expectations that we, and often others, have of ourselves. They provide the benchmark of performance in our lives and we all differ in how high (or low) we set these standards.

It can be difficult at times to set our personal standards appropriately. If we set them too low, we risk diminishing our motivation towards achieving our goals. Setting them too high can result in disappointment and distress.

This module will guide you through two steps that will help you to: a) lower standards that are unrealistically high, and/or b) raise standards that are too low. It provides practical tools to help you complete each step and achieve your desired outcome.

Examples of Personal Standards

When setting our Personal Standards, we essentially decide a) what we aspire to and b) what we want out of life. Our standards help us align our behaviour with our goals and views and allow us to set a point of satisfaction, where we tell ourselves ’this is good enough’. Some examples of Personal Standards include:

Loyalty

Being loyal to friends and family.

Health and fitness

Health related standards such as a specific diet or excercise regime.

Self-discipline

Being focused on the task at hand.

Gratitude

Approaching life with thankfulness.

Morals

Personal sense of ‘right or wrong’.

Authenticity

Being yourself and not pretending to be something you are not.

“Personal Standards and goal-setting are closely related. But how are standards different from goals? ”

“Think of your standards as the “why” you desire certain things or want to do things a certain way. Your standards determine what you expect of yourself. They are often fixed and do not change or bend easily. Goals are the “how” you aim to reach what you desire. They are set by you in order to achieve what is important to you or what you deem necessary. They can be short or long-term and are more fluid.”

Understanding your Personal Standards score

An optimal score suggests that you have high expectations for yourself and that you are highly motivated to meet them. You consistently push yourself to perform your best both at work and in your personal life. You may want to explore this module to maintain good functioning.

Why working on your Personal Standards is important

Personal Standards are an important component of self-discipline and self-esteem. Setting high standards leads to:

Better performance & productivity

Individuals with high standards know what it is they want to achieve and what steps to take to realise their goals and perform well.

Higher motivation & confidence

Expecting ‘more’ from yourself keeps you motivated and confident to achieve your goals.

Stronger relationships

Individuals with high standards and motivation tend to be highly valued and respected by others.

Personal Standards and Self-Criticism

Your MyMynd assessment results will also have given you information about your Self-Criticism. This refers to negative thoughts about yourself or, more specifically, about your ability to complete a particular goal or task.

Your Personal Standards largely influence your level of Self-Criticism and vice versa. Setting unrealistic standards and being highly self-critical can make you feel like you are unable to live up to those standards, resulting in perceived failure and self-punishment.

In order to ensure good mental health, motivation and productivity, it is important to find the right balance between how high you set your standards and your level of Self-Criticism. Please consider exploring tools for improving both areas.

Explore Self-Criticism resources

How can you set your Personal Standards appropriately?

As with a lot of things in life, it’s all about balance. Set yourself high standards, but be realistic about them and allow for mistakes. It is perfectly normal to realise that you have adopted standards that are not the most appropriate or self-caring; what matters most is how you go about changing them. This can be done in two steps:

Step 1: Awareness

Sometimes you will set your standards consciously, other times you will have adopted them from others (e.g. your parents) without realising it. By becoming aware of the expectations you have for yourself, you can take ownership of your life choices and aim for better.

Step 2: Changing Standards

You might identify yourself as someone with relatively low standards and be looking for ways to increase them. Alternatively you might identify yourself as having standards that are set too high and be aiming to make them more realistic. Either way there are various strategies you can use to improve your standards.