How memories and past experiences affect the value of inanimate objects

In this vast world full of knowledge, there still seems to be this fine line between emotional and logical selling of objects. Often if something is held dear to the owners heart, they tend to believe that it's value is a lot higher than it might be worth to others. But what fuels this? What connections can be made between the final selling price and your emotional attachment towards this object?

According to this graph created by Jessica Hagy, there is a connection between both how much an item is worth to you and what you can sell it for. It shows that as soon as you establish an emotional connection with an item you believe that it's selling price is higher. There also seems to be a connection to the logical thoughts of selling as well as emotional connection when it comes to the final selling time. But what causes these factors to coincide? There are numerous factors which could cause an object to grow in value in your own eyes, the one I'm going to focus on is the memory side of inanimate objects. The value of an inanimate object in your eyes can vary greatly, I believe this is predominantly due to the experiences one had with the object. A good example for this would be a car. If it's a newly bought car which you're not interested in and practically never drove, it's value to you would be far less than one which you shared numerous experiences and memories with. This could range anywhere from having a long road trip, in it too the hundreds of hours you spend restoring it or any other number of things. The longer you end up spending your time with it, the more you end up appreciating it for what it actually is and you then start to believe that all of it's little charms are actually what make it so valuable, even if those charms were to involve a faulty gearbox, a highly sensitive clutch pedal or minor dents in the bodywork. All of these factors would make another person believe that the value of the car is worth less than you do, as what the two different perspectives see affect the purposed value. Although the object, at the end of the day, is inanimate, the memories one has is what truly makes it worth more than the exact same object which you didn't share any experiences with. At the end, the emotional and logical thinking have to coincide to give you the actual worth of the object.

If you had to choose one of your favourite possessions with which you share many memories, what do you believe that item is truly worth? Do you think you would have to let it go for a lot less than you thinks it's worth? If so, how much do you believe this is due to the memories? Would it change your perspective on what it's worth or not? Is the bond you have with the object directly connected to what you think it is worth?

Reference List

- Azi am plans. (2015, August 02). Retrieved February 28, 2016, from http://onicamarius.com/azi-am-plans/ - Hagy, J. (2015). There’s no such thing as a Vulcan hoarder. Retrieved February 28, 2016, from http://thisisindexed.com/2015/11/theres-no-such-thing-as-a-vulcan-hoarder/

#English