I love this definition for the word ‘standards’ by Collins Dictionary: Those morals, ethics, habits, etc., established by authority, custom, or an individual as acceptable.
When a person refers to standards, they usually refer to the principles of propriety, honesty, and integrity.
When I refer to ‘my standards,’ I usually refer to the principles I try to live by. Honesty, transparency, integrity, high moral ethics of right and wrong, and a place for everything with everything
in its place. However, I also believe that some personal standards are not etched in stone and can be
fluid as a person travels through life. Standards should be regularly evaluated and tested like any other
life purpose and meaning. I can certainly say that the standards I held myself to in my 20s are not the
same standards I hold myself to as I creep up to 50.
By the same token, I also believe that there are standards that are etched in stone (literally) and are
immovable.

Personal Standards to Live By

For me, the Ten Commandments are the top-tier standards that I am called to live by.

I. “You shall have no other gods before me."

II. “You shall not make for yourself an image in the form of anything in heaven above or on earth.
beneath or in the waters below. You shall not bow down to them or worship them; for I, the Lord, your
God, am a jealous God, punishing the children for the sin of the parents to the third and fourth generation of those who hate me, but showing love to a thousand generations of those who love me and keep my commandments.

III. “You shall not misuse the name of the Lord your God, for the Lord will not hold anyone guiltless who
misuses his name.

The Ten Commandments

IV. “Remember the Sabbath day by keeping it holy. Six days you shall labor and do all your work, but the seventh day is a sabbath to the Lord, your God. On it, you shall not do any work, neither you, nor your son or daughter, nor your male or female servant, nor your animals, nor any foreigner residing in your towns. For in six days, the Lord made the heavens and the earth, the sea, and all that is in them, but he rested on the seventh day. Therefore, the Lord blessed the Sabbath day and made it holy.

V. “Honor your father and your mother, so that you may live long in the land the Lord your God is giving you.

VI. “You shall not murder.

VII. “You shall not commit adultery.

VIII. “You shall not steal.

IX. “You shall not give false testimony against your neighbor.

X. “You shall not covet your neighbor’s house. You shall not covet your neighbor’s wife, or his male or female servant, his ox or donkey, or anything that belongs to your neighbor.”

A tall order and I honestly admit that I have failed to keep all the commandments at various times in my
life; thus, I admit to falling below my own standards.

Personal Standards: Etymology

I want to talk a little about where the idea of standards came from and how it is used in modern
vernacular. I researched and found an online etymology dictionary that gave a pretty concise
historical background on the usage.
In the mid-12th century, a standard was used in the military as a rallying point. It was usually a noticeable
flag or ornate object that was easily recognizable. The word itself is derived from the Frankish to mean
stand hard. The word evolved over time, but in the 15th century, the term king’s standard was the
official royal ordinance that set weights and measures. It was in 1560 that the meaning evolved to “rule,
principal or means of judgment”. This time period coincided with important treaty signings, like the
Treaty of Edinburgh (where French and English military forces were ousted from Scotland) and the
Treaty of Berwick (where peace was established between Queen Elizabeth I and King James VI). This was
also the same time period that the Roman Catholic Church was overthrown and Protestantism was
established as the national religion in Scotland.
In our modern vernacular, we really started seeing the term ‘standards’ first being used in the early
1900s with the establishment of organizations like ISO (International Organization for Standardization).
Note: The organization was originally ISA) in 1921, and ANSI (American National Standards Institute)
existing since 1918 Standardized testing in education started in 1901, according to the National
Education Association. In the early 1980s, during the Reagan era, standards underwent an overhaul where there were more stringent regulations put on standards in education, government, and the financial
industries. Nowadays, everything seems to be standardized.

Personal Standards a Model

The term ‘standard’ seems to warrant authority. In manufacturing, if someone says that the standard
method to accomplish something is such-and-such, there is often little argument since a standard is
meant to be the top elevation that a function can achieve. In religion, we have religious standards that
are the accepted authority for religious belief. There are even cooking standards that are beat into the
heads of culinary newbies. In many ways, we trust standards to be the optimal achievement level for the
various functions of our daily lives.
But why do we consider standards as something important in our daily lives? Are standards even
relevant for today? There is a country song by Aaron Tippin that goes, “You’ve got to stand for
something, or you’ll fall for anything”. The premise behind his song is that if you live a life without
standards, you will be compromising in your decisions. This can have unwanted consequences and
seems like a bad idea.

Personal Standards in Daily Life

I think that standards are important in our daily lives because they are the map by which we make decisions. If you own a store and have a standard of honesty, you won’t be likely to cheat your customers. The people in your life will have confidence in you because they can rely on you if you have the standard of faithfulness. If you have a standard of excellence in your work, your company can trust that your output will be reliable and generally error-free. Standards drive every
decision we make and impact the people we interact with every day.
Standards are absolutely relevant to our lives today. In an age where we see a new scandal hit the news
every day, we have to call back a life of standards to impact our world. But we need to talk about the
difference between low standards and high standards. Low standards can be best described as lower
expectations we put on ourselves. Generally, when we have low standards on something in our lives, it
is because we don’t care about it. We may have lowered standards for everyday items in our lives that

don’t really impact our quality of life. But we have to be careful because our lowered standards and
expectations can creep into the things that do make a significant impact on our lives before we know it.

Personal Standards in Education

High standards are the elevated expectations that we have for the people and things in our lives. We expect our spouse or significant other to meet certain criteria for our happiness. We expect the
appliances we have to operate at max efficiency. We expect our children to put stuff away when they
finished using it. Our standards are an expression of our care. It is the communication of how we value
what is in our lives.
In my life, I believe that my standards and resulting actions are an expression of love for those around me.
Whether that be in my family life, my work, or my leisure, I am constantly expressing the level of
love I have for those around me by the standards I live by. I think of it this way: because I care about
you, I will not lie to you. Because I care about you, I will not steal from you. Because I care about you, I
will not purposely hurt you. And the list goes on. I hold myself to a high standard because I equate
standards to care and I want others to know at all times that I am there if they need me.

Personal Standards Applied

I encourage you to consider the meaning of standards in your life. Part of the Educate Our Self journey is
to challenge our standards and learn why we have them and how they impact our lives. I also encourage
you to evaluate areas of your life where your standards can be improved. I know there are areas in my
life where my standards are not where I want them, and as I grow in personal knowledge, I know these
areas will improve.

See Standards for Lifelong Learning for more insights on this topic.