Map your values across the four life domains

Write one core value statement for each domain — work, relationships, personal growth, leisure — before touching the bullseye.

Why it works

Values only guide behavior when they are explicit. Most people hold values implicitly and inconsistently — they surface in moments of pain but not in planning. Mapping them domain by domain surfaces conflicts (where values compete) and blind spots (domains where no value has been named) before they silently shape choices. The four-domain structure prevents the common error of naming one life area (typically work) while leaving others empty and reactive.

How to do it

1. Take a page and draw four sections: Work/Education, Relationships, Personal Growth/Health, Leisure.
2. In each section write: "The person I want to be in this area is someone who ___."
3. Write a direction, not a goal: "who shows up present for my children" rather than "who is a good parent."
4. Check that each statement is genuinely yours, not an inherited expectation.

Evidence

Explicit values-mapping is a core ACT technique; it is grounded in self-determination theory research showing that explicitly chosen, autonomous values sustain behavior more effectively than externally imposed ones. (observational)

The four-domain structure is clinical design; the evidence base is the broader ACT and SDT literature rather than this specific format.

Common mistake

Writing goals ("get a promotion") rather than values ("be someone who brings full skill to my work"). A goal is completable; the bullseye value is the direction you keep aiming.