If you’ve taken business classes, no doubt you are well acquainted with the two-by-two matrix (most famously, the BCG Growth/Share Matrix — remember the “cash cow”?) Well, these handy little grids can be used any number of ways to help classify opportunities and make decisions.

One I like to use juxtaposes your skill level in a situation versus how well that situation is aligned with your top life values. I call it the Value Alignment Matrix, and there are strategies that apply to each quadrant of the matrix.

To set up your Value Alignment Matrix create two axes:

1. Level of skill: Good At <–> Not Good At
2. Alignment to Values: Aligned with Value <–> Not Aligned with Values

Now, list opportunities or projects meeting the criteria for each quadrant (i.e. perhaps a particular job opportunity is something you are GOOD AT and is ALIGNED with your values)

Reviewing the items you have listed in each quadrant, consider these strategies to help you further evaluate your opportunities:

Good At/Aligned with Values

This is good news! Potentially this opportunity will be both energizing and fun for you. The goal is to maximize this opportunity, but it is not a forgone conclusion that this is the perfect thing. Ask yourself:

• How does this opportunity support my larger sense of life purpose?
• Am I fascinated by the topic or industry? Is it something I want to immerse myself in?
• How does this opportunity help get me to where I want to be 5/10/20 years from now?

Good At/Not Aligned with Values

Beware! This is where a lot of people get trapped! You can be good at something, gain promotions and get paid well for something that is totally unfulfilling to you.

Review your top values. Rank your values 1-10. If you take this opportunity, how how would you be honoring or squashing each of your top values? What tradeoffs you are willing to make?Are there ways you can adjust this opportunity to better support your values?

Not Good At/Aligned with Values

Don’t necessarily write this off. First, is it true that you are not good at it? How much do you really know about the skills needed for this opportunity? Find people who are doing similar projects or work and ask them about their experiences. You may be suprised at what you learn.

It may be that you just need additional training, which may take the form of volunteering, probono work, or course work.

Finally, is it possible to partner with someone who has the skills you lack? If a project has great resonance with your values, it may be worth it to ask for help to make it happen.

Not Good At/Not Aligned with Values

You’ll probably want to stay away from this project, but if you do decide to pursue it be sure you know what you want from it:

• What are your goals for this project?
• What do you want to make sure you learn?
• What is your exit plan?