Perceived Value and You
I was indulging in one of my favorite activities – looking at houses for sale online. I love seeing the different architecture, landscaping and floor plans. I came across two that appealed to me and was intrigued by the difference in them. One was a huge house with smaller house on the property, a large pool and some amazing interior design. Situated on a scenic drive with a lake behind it and a private pier on the harbor in front.
Resort House
The other is on a tucked-away lane and also has a separate building attached. I had seen the 2nd house while taking a drive and was enchanted by it. 7 bedrooms, a 3-car garage, pool and an arch that spans the driveway and separates the two buildings. I fell in love with the look of the house and the feel of the location.
The house also online appealed to me – the smaller house could be rented out for vacationers or used as a retreat location. Or vice-versa.
Both homes had this capability and I went daydreaming about what it would feel like to live in each home.
The biggest difference between the two besides the total square footage was the use of the property.
House 1 covered most of the property with the living spaces and the pool, while House 2 had less living area and more landscaping.
The prices difference surprised me. While the 2nd house wasn’t for sale, the market value was 1/3 of House 1. I had thought they would be similarly priced.
It was interesting to note how this affected my views on which house I would put an offer on, given the opportunity. I found myself wanting to favor the higher-priced home.
And yet, the FEELING of house 2 was much more appealing. House 1 had a resort-type resonance with me, while house 2 felt serene and homey.
The realization that someone else’s Value label was influencing my choice was eye-opening.
While thinking that I would get more value from a higher-priced acquisition, I was discounting my own Value Points System. The feeling of serenity and peace is much higher on my list than living in a bustling resort. And it’s one benefit more than House 1. 🙂
And that is what’s truly Valuable!
On the other hand, when I bought my car, I had a choice between two. One was a hard-top and in the color I had been looking for. The other was a convertible and close to the color I had been wanting. I have had convertibles before, and I never put the top down. I was thinking that the convertible would be a silly choice, given that fact. As I looked the two cars over, the salesman chimed in with some additional information on the two cars.
The hardtop had a few more miles on it than the convertible. The convertible had a better sound system. The convertible would see a better trade-in rate. The doors on the convertible closed with a more solid sound.
The 2 cars were the same price and model year.
I went with the convertible after considering the salesman’s information.
It was a relatively easy choice, and I am happy with it. I like the color, the look of the car. I love the way he handles the road. I love the responsiveness of this car and how I feel in him. I have buyer’s contentment.
What it comes down to is how your choices MAKE YOU FEEL.
It doesn’t matter if your choice has a higher price tag or a lower price tag than the other option(s).
When you make a choice dependent on price tag only, you’re going to find out that’s how you feel after you take possession. It’s going to become a dominant thought and feeling. You’ll begin to think that your personal choice doesn’t hold VALUE.
Honoring your own desire is the way to have the feeling of Value in the Now. And when you have that, it opens the door for even more Abundance that’s tailor-made for you.
Annette Pedersen 
Great post, Annette! And one that I’ve bookmarked as a reminder…should I ever forget again. 😉
Two contrasting personal experiences have driven home your post’s very point that honouring my personal desires will serve me infinitely more than acting on the value judgements of others.
Personal example #1:
Years ago, I was given a $100 gift card at a furniture and home-décor store to use however I wished. Since I needed no more furniture in my tiny apartment, I decided an accessory or two would help me create the atmosphere I was after. I went to the store with certificate in hand and within a very short time, spotted a couple of items I secretly loved – I say secretly because every time I looked at them, I had thoughts that went something like this: “Gee…I haven’t seen anything like these things on the home decorating shows lately. I wonder if they’re…goofy or out of style or something. Hmmm…will my guy think I ‘wasted’ money on these things that would be, in his view, frivolous…or even useless?” I made myself turn away from these items: a small black and silver lamp, and a set of four coordinating kinda funky big-cat prints by a young artist in frames and with deep red matting that I loved. I turned away from them several times and continued to look for something ‘else’, something more …impressive. After an embarrassing three hours of indecision, I did it! I chose! And I decided to choose for ME! And, you know what? Thirteen years later, I’m STILL loving my little black lamp and those big-cat prints. We’ve lived in four different places, and in each place, they’ve given me joy!
Personal example #2:
A few years later, my guy and I went to Mexico, and I spotted an quirky imported wooden sculpture that I LOVED! By the way, I discovered they LOVE to barter in Mexico and ‘expect’ that ‘you’ will too. Well I’m not good at that kind of thing, I knew they didn’t expect me to pay what they were asking…but I didn’t know Mexican currency very well, so I kept backing off from my desired item. So, can you guess what I came home with? Well, it wasn’t the item I loved, because I saw my guy eyeing this marble sculpture of a ‘thing’, which he kept bringing my attention back to. He thought it was pretty cool, he said. I couldn’t see it, quite frankly, but I tossed my desire aside for the item that he thought would look cool – the item ‘he’ thought held the most value. Guess what? Two years later, I grew weary of moving that ‘thing’, yet again, back into the closet because every time I laid eyes on it, I felt heavy and flat. I finally donated it to Good Will, and to this day (7 years later), my guy has not realized it’s no longer with us. LOL So tell me – in what way did holding ‘his’ value judgment in higher esteem serve either of us?! In retrospect, he really didn’t give two hoots what I bought that day; he just wanted me to make a decision about the item, to get on with it, and be on our way. 😉
So, OHHHH YES, Annette, I need to keep this blog post close, very close.
I love where you said:
“Honoring your own desire is the way to have the feeling of Value in the Now. And when you have that, it opens the door for even more Abundance that’s tailor-made for you.”
Brenda,
I love the examples you gave!
And I find myself smiling when I read about the lamp and the cat prints. Your Joy with them comes right off the screen.
Thank you for giving me some Abundance this morning 🙂