Is less worth more?
We spent a wonderful weekend upstate with some friends, Maria and Rob. They are splendid – lots of laughter, wonderful conversation, and positive energy. We canoed, grilled, and told stories around the campfire. It’s always great when friends are also clients!
As we talked about life, they shared a story about when they were younger, living in the NYC area, and trying to make it.
The $800 Story
In those years, they spent just about every last penny to buy a condo. At the time, Rob was a club promoter, and Maria was a professional opera singer.
One month, money was really tight. They needed $800 to pay the mortgage on time. Rob was confident that he would make the money Saturday night while he was promoting. After a long night, he had to wait until the club closed at 4am to get his payout.
Waiting at home, Maria was extremely nervous. She couldn’t sleep and was wide awake when Rob got home in the wee hours of the morning.
He walked in and threw $800 on the bed – all singles!!
They were so happy! Maria and Rob jumped up and down and had tears of joy on their faces.
They were able to pay their mortgage that month and it boosted their confidence that they were on their way to prosperity.
The Aftermath – Is Less Worth More?
Maria and Rob both said that it was the best money they ever made.
Since then, they’ve changed careers. Rob is a successful co-founder of a tech business and Maria is a finance executive.
They shared that if they make an extra $50K this year from an unexpected payout or bonus, it will never be the same.
“No amount of money will ever feel as good as that $800 bucks!”
Sounds ridiculous…but notice how the brain can be irrational. From a numbers perspective, this makes no sense. How can $800 be “worth” more than $50K!? In this case, less is worth more.
From a mindset perspective, the $800 represented so much more to them. It meant keeping their house! They survived and went on living. The emotion and the vividness of their memories of that special $800 (all singles) are so much stronger.
There’s a lot of emotion wrapped up in money, as you can see from this example!
When have you felt like this about money? It would be great to hear your story!