The Canadian federal election is coming up in just a few days. It’s encouraging to see a record turn-out in the advance polls. Clearly, Canadian voters are motivated to have their opinions heard. I wonder, though, how well the voters know the party that they’re voting for.

It’s not that uncommon for an election to end up being more of a popularity contest than a policy-based vote. We often choose the leader who’s most appealing, most charismatic or most familiar to us while not really understanding what this person or their party actually stand for.

Voting should always be about what your goals are for yourself and your family and how each party’s values are likely (or unlikely) to help you achieve these goals. Still, it’s easy to be taken in by a flashing smile and a catchy line. It happened in the recent election of Rob Ford as premier of Ontario.

Ford is a great populist and he got a lot of love from people who didn’t appear to have taken the time to examine his real agenda.

Now that Ford is in office, a whole lot of Ontarians are up in arms about his actions, but if they’d taken the time to study his policies before the election, none of his cuts to education or health care, for example, would have come as a surprise.

If you don’t want to experience another nasty shock in the wake of the Federal election, you need to understand who you’re voting for.

It’s not enough to accept at face value the flashy promises made by each leader on the campaign trail. You need to learn the core values of the party you’re thinking about supporting. You need to decide if their values are in sync with yours, or not.

For this reason, it’s important to take time to reflect on your own values and ask yourself, “What’s most important to me? Is it the environment, the economy, education, taxes, or health care?” When you’re clear about what matters to you, it’s a lot easier to make the right decision on Election Day.

It’s so important to vote for the party whose values align with your own because otherwise, you won’t be able to achieve your goals. If you’re hoping to purchase your first home or save money for your retirement, for example, you need to vote for the party that values these things as well and that will help you to achieve these goals.

When you know the issues each party stands for, you’re empowered to cast your vote for the party that best aligns with your values and supports your goals.

It’s not enough to be captivated by a charming smile. That means nothing after the election dust settles. And you should always be skeptical about campaign-trail rhetoric. Many of these promises sound amazing but are nearly impossible to keep.

Instead, examine the policies of each party. Decide which party most closely lines up with the things that are important to you, and vote – not for the most charismatic leader or the most attractive leader but for the leader whose values you believe in and who’ll help you achieve your goals.

Sign up here for my free biweekly wellness newsletter that brings you fresh, thought-provoking content.

Subscribe to my YouTube Channel to watch my series Moving into Autumn with Good Self-Care, where you’ll learn simple tips for taking the best care of yourself and your loved ones this fall season.

Tune in to my Ruthless Compassion Podcast where I go in-depth about topics like mental health, trauma, and loneliness.