Abstract This article advocates the use of developing individual core ethical values as the first step in a process of using one's own principles as a means of keeping focused and grounded. The article does not stop but encourages the reader to actually use the value through the introduction of a straightforward yet sophisticated decision model. However, the article introduces the notion that the ethical environment of the institution for which the religious professional works needs also to be analyzed through the use of an ethics audit. Using these three basic tools (core values, decision model and ethics audit), the religious professional will be better able to understand the dissonance between one's values when compared with one's actions and take important steps to bridge the gap in an effective and healthly manner.