We are taught to value money. Do this to save a dollar. Do that to...save a dollar.

A friend gave me a $1,000 gift certificate for Amazon. That is more money than I give my sister for her birthday and Christmas.

I bought about 60 items and could not even spend the full $1,000. Will I get to all the items? Hopefully. I may not though. And that becomes apparent as I get more good deals and am given more gifts, that price eventually stops mattering. With a limited lifespan and a decent business model the value of attention becomes a far greater expense than cost in dollars.

I think the concept of price not mattering is something many good marketers and product designers try to tap into. You can't make something for everyone without it being shit.

You want to target people with adequate desire to do spend extra and do your marketing for you.

In the past I felt guilty about buying expensive things - a trait learned from my mother. I have since changed my philosophy though. What price is the right price for happiness? Can you place a dollar amount on that?

You can't buy happiness, but you can make certain portions of your life more convenient or easier or interesting. In doing that - in lacking some petty stresses of life or the boredom repetion brings - in actually doing whatever makes you happy you are far more inclined to be productive. To be able to produce effective results.

Productivity is an arbitrary measure which deprives us of life because it always states that you could do better. In the navy, for example average meant that you were a piece of shit. Even outstanding was only average because it was expected. Even though when you got that rating there were still many less than subtle hints that you were viewed as a scumbag. But I digress.

What I am trying to say is lets say I feed a couple poor African kids and pay to build a few houses in third world countries. The money I spent buying random crap from Amazon could have went to do more good like that, but at the end of the day if I am happier my mind will be more receptive to learning, and my profits will likely increase. On that front I no longer feel guilty about spending money even if I feel I get more than I deserve.