The difference between worth and value

Since we are looking at linguistics, here is another pair of words that have ended up being used in ways that make them pretty much interchangeable, especially when it comes to advertising.

The thing is, though: they have distinctly different meanings, and mixing them up in your mind is a sure-fire way to make you doubt any decisions you might be ready to make when it comes to decluttering!

You have probably been exposed to phrases like ‘because you are worth it’, ‘incredible value for money’ and the like. But are you really aware what they mean? I have specifically chosen those two examples for reasons explained towards the end of this article!

Here are the two terms explained:

• Worth is a term used to describe how much something will cost or how much an item will sell for. This means it is a description of purely monetary value.
• Value is a much broader term. It describes an emotional notion, but does not necessarily include a monetary value (although it could!). Something given to you as a gift may not be worth more than a fiver, but could hold huge emotional value.

This being said, let’s review the two statements above once more:

‘Because you are worth it…’ insinuates you or your actions may have a monetary value rather than the intended understanding that you deserve something valuable (see what I did here?). While this IS an advertising slogan, it entirely hits the wrong strings.

‘Incredible value for money’ is a lot more subtle and multi-layered but it still is pandering to a misunderstanding. It overemphasises the monetary aspect of the item you are supposed to buy, by overplaying an emotional or sentimental element it has never had to you before you saw the advertisement. Using the word this way might even make you believe you DO have a sentimental connection with the item!

How is this related to decluttering?

It’s interesting to separate the value and worth of an item when you are trying to let go of things in your home. If you mix up the sentimental value, monetary worth (and not to forget the usefulness) of an item, it becomes much more difficult to come to a proper conclusion if you keep this or not.

It’s hard enough to decide if you only take practical concerns into consideration: asking yourself the one question “do I need this?” would lead to pretty much clutter-free homes all around. Just looking at your friends’ homes will tell a different story, though.

Now imagine that you have decided something is not necessary and you need to determine its emotional value: just adding a sentimental element of value into the mix will make it drastically more difficult to let go of this. Now add in the question ‘how much is this worth’… It becomes pretty much impossible to let go of anything because it could be either useful, valuable or sentimental, or – even worse – all of the above.

Next time you think to yourself “this is too valuable to throw out”, try to separate monetary from sentimental value and use this experience to make a better, and easier, choice.

If you have enjoyed reading this, you may find these other articles interesting:

• The value of things
• Emotional blockage
• Be considerate of others