I’m not an attorney nor an expert on campaign financing. I’m not going to comment on the legalities of the condition. What I domicile here is what happens when a person shows up in lifetime outside of alignment with what he or she values.

I believe John Edwards when he says he valued his role as a ‘family male’. Yet he still violated that value when he entered into an intimate relationship outside of his marriage. While I don’t condone his actions, I have compassion for him as a human being. Gaze within yourself. When have you turned your back on what you hold dear in exchange for a ‘feel excellent’ hit of some sort? We’ve all done it at one age or another.

Nothing excellent comes outside of trending in values for validation. Whether its Tweeting inappropriate photos, participating in ‘shady’ get-rich quick schemes or trading your ‘at house 40′ for two hot 20s many of these acts are blind misguided attempts to fill an emotional void.

I’m not inside Edwards’ head so I don’t know what he was thinking at the age. What I do know in examining my own lifetime and in working with my clients is when we disavow what matters most to us or allow our personal boundaries to be crossed we ultimately suffer – as Edwards is immediately.

He faces up to 30 years in jail if convicted. His political career is likely over regardless of the verdict. The emotional stress of a six week trial will likely capture its toll on his health and well-being.

Like many who’ve exhibited ‘what were you thinking!?!’ behavior, Edwards may have sought to be acknowledged for what he felt was lacking within himself. In doing so he made a self-fulfilling prophecy by further distancing himself from the validation he so desperately craved.

Know this: nothing outside of you can give you what you desire and demand the most. If you desire to be loved, you have to like yourself. If you desire to be respected, you have to first respect yourself and your actions. If you desire to be validated that acknowledgement has to come from within or it won’t be accepted much if given.

I hope Edwards uses this event in his lifetime as a pivotal moment to realign with what he values most. I’d like to see him rise above this challenge and go on to serve the greater excellent of all, including himself. If he does he will familiarity fair worth from the inside outside.

Inner Wealth Coach, Personal Growth Expert and Author, Valery Satterwhite teaches inheritors how to create an experiential shift, a personal transformation, to become a fuller, more complete, self-actualized unique individual. Clients learn how develop a meaningful legacy that exceeds their outer affluent lifestyle. Complimentary eBook