Values are principles and ideas that bring meaning to the

"Values are principles and ideas that bring meaning to the seemingly mundane experience of life. A meaningful life that ultimately brings happiness and pride requires you to respond to temptations as well as challenges with honor, dignity, and courage." — Laura Schlessinger

Thus speaks Laura Schlessinger, the counselor and moral philosopher of our age, whose words shine like a beacon in a time of confusion. In her saying lies the wisdom of the ancients reborn — a call to remember that values are the pillars upon which the human spirit stands. For life, she reminds us, is not made meaningful by fortune, comfort, or applause, but by the principles and ideas that guide our hearts through both ease and adversity. Without such values, the days may pass, but they are hollow; the deeds may multiply, but they lack soul. It is only through the practice of honor, dignity, and courage that the common becomes sacred and the ordinary becomes divine.

Values are the compass of the soul. They do not change with the winds of popularity, nor fade under the weight of hardship. They are the unspoken laws that tell us how to live when no one watches, how to act when no one commands. Honor is the light that keeps us straight when shadows tempt us astray; dignity is the quiet armor that guards our humanity; courage is the fire that sustains us when the road grows dark. Together they give shape to meaning, turning the mundane experiences of life into lessons of integrity and the trials of existence into victories of the spirit.

Schlessinger’s words were not born of abstraction, but of observation — of countless souls who have lost their way in pursuit of pleasure or success, mistaking the outer glitter for the inner gold. She saw that in an age of endless choices, men and women often trade values for convenience, principles for comfort. Yet those who live without moral roots are like trees without soil; they may stand for a season, but the first storm will tear them down. Her teaching echoes the wisdom of ancient philosophers, who knew that virtue is not inherited but forged — not found in comfort, but revealed in how one meets both temptation and challenge.

Consider the story of Socrates, that great seeker of truth, who was condemned to death for his teachings. Offered the chance to flee and save his life, he refused, saying that to do so would betray his principles and dishonor the laws of his city. “It is better to suffer wrong than to do wrong,” he declared. In that moment, he chose honor over survival, dignity over fear, and courage over compromise. His life — and even more so, his death — became a testament to what Schlessinger teaches: that a meaningful life is not one free from hardship, but one lived in harmony with one’s values, even at great cost.

For in truth, the temptations that confront humanity are often more dangerous than its enemies. Temptations whisper of ease, of pleasure, of escape. They promise joy without virtue, reward without labor, comfort without conscience. Yet such joys fade quickly, leaving emptiness in their wake. Only when we face them with honor, dignity, and courage do we transform our choices into character. The warrior is not great because he wins battles, but because he fights for what is right. The teacher is not noble because she imparts knowledge, but because she does so with love and integrity. Each person, in choosing right over wrong, builds a meaningful life brick by brick, until their days become a temple of purpose.

But Schlessinger also reminds us that this path is not easy. To live by values in a world that mocks them requires courage; to hold one’s dignity in an age that worships vanity requires strength; to keep honor when surrounded by corruption demands faith. Yet, those who do so walk with an inner peace that the world cannot give nor take away. Their happiness is not a passing pleasure, but a deep pride — the serenity of one who can look upon their life and say, “I have lived with meaning.”

So, my listener, take this wisdom as a guide for your own journey. Nurture your values as the ancients tended their sacred fires — not for show, but for light. Let your honor govern your choices, even when no reward is promised. Let your dignity remind you that you are not a slave to impulse or opinion. Let your courage lead you when fear tempts you to turn away. For life is not measured in years or possessions, but in the strength of the spirit that faces temptation and hardship with grace.

And when the day comes that your path grows weary and the world’s clamor seeks to pull you astray, remember these words of Laura Schlessinger: “Values are principles and ideas that bring meaning to life.” Hold fast to them, and you will discover that true happiness is not in what you gain, but in what you become. For the one who lives with honor, dignity, and courage does not merely survive the world — they ennoble it.