Todd Fithian recently made a film for his four children.

"I took the time to capture my stories, life lessons and family traditions, many of which have been passed down to me from my parents," says Mr. Fithian, a 43-year-old managing partner of Legacy Cos., a Hingham, Mass., consulting firm to financial advisers. "These things have a trickle-down effect, but rarely do we take the time to capture them."

Mr. Fithian's video is part of a burgeoning effort in estate-planning circles to ensure that life lessons are passed on to loved ones. Educators, financial advisers and technology providers are approaching the task on two fronts: encouraging and helping older adults to share their stories and values before they die, and teaching adult children and grandchildren how to tap their parents' and grandparents' thoughts.

"The admonishment I would pass along, both to seniors and their adult children, is to be proactive about [addressing] one's tangible estate and the often more impactful intangible legacy," says Tim Maurer, vice president of Financial Consulate, a financial-management firm in Hunt Valley, Md., and co-author of "The Ultimate Financial Plan: Balancing Your Money and Life."

A case in point: the Legacy Project, founded by Karl Pillemer, a professor of human development in the College of Human Ecology at Cornell University and author of "30 Lessons for Living." On the project's website (legacyproject.human.cornell.edu) and its YouTube channel, users can read and listen to lessons from hundreds of older Americans on more than a dozen subjects, including careers, marriage and parenting.