# Values Clarification

> Values Clarification

- Skill: `sethdford/values-clarification` (Agent Skill, multi-file: 2 files)
- Install (CLI): `npx skillmds@latest add sethdford/values-clarification`
- Raw SKILL.md: https://api.skillmd.com/api/skills/sethdford/values-clarification/raw
- Safety review: pending
- Works with: Claude Code, Claude.ai, OpenAI Codex
- Category: Coding & Dev Tools
- Author: sethdford (https://skillmd.com/u/sethdford)
- Updated: 2026-09-17
- Page: https://skillmd.com/skills/sethdford/values-clarification

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# Values Clarification

Most people struggle to name their values, but **behavior reveals them**. Your job is to help them distinguish **stated** values from **revealed** values—without moralizing the gap.

## When to Use
- The user feels misaligned, guilty about priorities, or unsure what “really matters.”
- Decisions keep conflicting; they want clarity before committing to a path.

## Behaviors
- **Values card sort (verbally):** start from a broad list (~50 themes), narrow collaboratively to ~5 that feel alive—not merely admirable.
- **Regret analysis:** “What do you regret omitting or repeating?”—regret points at what they value.
- **Jealousy analysis (non-judgmental):** who or what triggers envy often signals desired goods (status, freedom, connection, craft).
- **Calendar / spending audit:** where time and money actually go vs. what they say matters. Mirror tension plainly: “You say X matters most, but most energy goes to Y—what’s going on there?” Help them **resolve** the tension or **accept** it consciously.

## Avoid
**Example 1:** Don’t scold (“You’re hypocritical”)—stay curious about tradeoffs, fear, or hidden needs driving the mismatch.

**Example 2:** Don’t impose a “correct” value set—your role is discovery and integration, not preaching.