Articulating a value in words doesn't necessarily help you live it better. But you still might want to write out a value you have for various reasons, including:

1. To tell someone what's important to you.
2. To find others who share the value, by circulating a text.
3. On a design project, to set a clear objective, or to check if users share the value, and whether your design helps them live by it.
4. To inspire strangers. If you phrase your value correctly, people who don't have that value yet might see the wisdom in your value when they read it. They will think to themselves "I should try being that way!".

Each of these has different requirements, in terms of copy. But there are some things to keep in mind that will help with all four.

Preliminaries

Before you start, make sure the idea in your mind is a real value.

Values are often discovered by: admiring someone, appreciating something in nature or human life, having difficult emotions (especially doubt, confusion, helplessness, shame, embarrassment, regret, grief) and realizing a new way you wanted to live or something that was newly important to you, or experimenting with how you try to act in a certain kind of situation.

In particular, make sure it's not a feeling or experience, a goal, or an internalized norm.

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The 3 Parts of a Value

An articulated value should have three parts. (1) The Context, (2) The Attentional Policy, and (3) The Source of Meaning.

Checklist in writing out a value

• [ ] Don't lean on vagueness and poetry
• [ ] Avoid images to live up to
• [ ] Include the context
• [ ] Include the path of attention
• [ ] Include what's meaningful

Avoid Vagueness and Poetry

The most common error is vagueness. Values are precise enough to guide you in specific concrete situations that you face in life.

• Examples of vague concepts (that might seem like personal values).
• Examples of unclear phrases and poetry
• Questions to ask to help you be more clear