Things are only worth what people perceives them to be

What is the first definition that comes to your mind when you buy something? It probably will be someone exchanging money for something of value, and this is true, though only to an extent. We'll focus on the value part and we'll expand on that. What is exactly value? It is the objective real value of something or is It just what everybody agrees on with regards to what Is acceptable to pay for It? Well, here is where perceived value makes Its entrance, It being the price that both parties (The ones making the exchange) agree that is a good price in relationship to what It can deliver and one of them is willing to pay. However, there comes a real problem when It comes to this assigned price that can get to devastating conclussions in the court or even worse: When the perceived value doesn't match the real value. Let's say you are a fitness coach and you make ads about a new pill that will make people burn fat quick (It being a shortcut to modifying your diet, reducing your calory intake and working out), getting the value of It, through marketing, to list at 50$ (The perceived value agreed by you and your clients). Then, when weeks pass and the clients don't see any progress they'll figure out the real lie, that the true value of the product doesn't match the perceived value and because of that, It goes down. That's why in this article I will talk about the importance of matching the value you offer with a quality product, being either businesses, creative endeavours or just your daily life. Let's begin by telling you about the threats of perceived value without real value.

What's happening nowadays

We are in a point of time where people are constantly seeking shortcuts for everything, being either getting rich quick, fit in weeks or laid in two hours without the effort that ensues actually getting the skills and momentum to get to those things. Along with this we're bombarded with a culture that forces us to consume without really asking the real value of things, so we fall into the trap of the perceived value that many people assign to pointless things like those headphones with a particular brand. This is not to demean the effort of companies PR campaigns, though we're becoming more and more susceptible to anything that anyone big tell us. If you really want to get out of the trap of a perceived value constantly surpassing what an item is really worth you should ask yourself the next question: For what reason am I buying this particular Item besides the utility I rationalize out of It?Image taken from Pixabay.com. Author: cocoparisienne

Emotions influence our purchases:

What most people don't like admit whenever they make a purchase is that there might be an underlying motive as to why they do It, far removed from the one they originally thought was the reason for them to go to the store. We like to think of ourselves as rational animals, only taking into account the Neocortex part of our brains, though we tend to forget the other parts that our evolutionary ancestors left us: The lymbic system and the basal ganglia or reptile brain, both related to emotions and fire or flight responses. For example, If you buy a new expensive car when you know the wisest thing will be to not even look at It, the real reason behind It might be that you're just seeking status instead of any thing that you tell yourself to convince you that Is worth It. There you have that primitive part trying to seek something as antique as our desire to get to a higher level of our tribe hierarchy. The same thing happens when you want something you because everyone has It, again referencing the behaviour of groups in the past. That's why we tend to feel so attracted towards things of high perceived value, as they tap into that parts of our being which can led us to make irrational decisions.

What can I do about It?

As I've said before, awareness is the key to making any significant change. By knowing that you might be in a environment that promotes that kind of irrational behavior and your own impulses towards bad financial decisions that push you to pursue things of high perceived value and a lower real value, you will be able to balance the scale, getting to the point where you can easily recognize when these two criteria perfectly match and you can get the best out of your buck.

I hope that this article could have brought you some useful information about the value of things which not always correlates to what It can deliver, presenting you with why everyone seems to always fall victim to overpriced items and what you can do about It, encouraging to pursue a life you want all while reminding yourself that you're making the decision because you can and are not being manipulated. Thank you for your support and good luck!