The first girl I seriously dated in Vegas supposedly really believed in Steven Covey's Seven Habits. However, almost every time, she offered me something that I didn't consider a win-win. I am not honestly surprised that so many businesses fail or must be fronts because they are not offering me a good value. Price isn't the only thing I consider. I'm old enough that I value my time, my limbs, and my freedom more than I value every single solitary penny. However, I continue to meet businesses and people who offer me things that I do not value and that for me are not actually victories. I don't mind fair, and I don't mind a mutually beneficial arrangement. I don't have to win at their expense, but I won't let them win at mine.
I took my Saturn in to have someone look at it a few weeks back because I wanted to know if my collision with a semi-truck caused any damage I couldn't see. The mechanics look at things for free and provide estimates, which I usually use to find out what I really need to fix and do it myself. My recent experience solidified for me why exactly I don't pay other people to do things that I can do myself. Besides regular maintenance of which I was already aware, they found that my right passenger wheel bearing was damaged, probably when I ran into the concrete barrier, which explains the high pitched squeal I sometimes hear. When I asked about just having that fixed, I was considering, if it was cheap enough, letting them fix it by itself right then and there. However, when it came back quoted as over $300, including a $40 markup on the part I needed changed, I decided to walk. Additionally, I noticed that over $500 of the rest of the quote was for LABOR. Ok, I don't make $500 in a day, so I sure as sudafed won't pay someone else that much to fix that car. Besides, I can probably change all the brakes myself in a day, meaning I come out ahead.
What they don't seem to realize is that if it's cheap enough, they'll get more business. That's the original Wal-mart theorem, that if we charge people less, they'll shop here more, and in volume we make up for what we lose in individual items. I actually considered paying him to do something I could do because it was convenient and because it was still up on the lift. I'm sure they could do it more quickly and let me drive around on worn brakes for a while until I get around to fixing that. They asked for so much that they ended up getting absolutely nothing from me for any work, including the diagnostic. There are many things at Wal-mart that are not actually cheaper. Consequently, I only buy things there that I can't get as cheaply anywhere else like automotive oil, dog treats, and ammunition. They lose tons of business because they aren't willing to offer me something I actually value. I stopped dating several young ladies because they demanded so much of me that it became a chore and a burden to continue dating and spending time with them. You get more flies with honey than vinegar, but they weren't offering any honey at all, and so I went where I would be better treated.
Contrast that to other experiences. For example, in Ely years ago I broke down in the middle of nowhere, and although I had to stay in a motel because they had to wait for a part, I didn't feel cheated by the repair. I even wrote a blog article recommending that shop, and if I lived in the area, I would probably go back. Likewise, when I paid another repair shop years ago to replace my engine motor mounts since I don't have a lift, they waited until I rode my bike from work to their shop so that I could pay and pick up my car for the next day. THey charged me a fair price, finished that day, and waited for me. For something I can't do myself, I would use them again. Anthony's donuts isn't quite as good as Friendly's donuts, but they are closer to my house, and he sometimes gives me a few for free. So, unless it's convenient, I don't go out of my way to Friendly's because it isn't.
I don't really know how people value things or why they think that things are worth more than I agree. One of my students told me this afternoon that she works for Gamestop and watches spoiled kids flip hundreds of dollars worth of new games for meager store credit. They don't understand what it cost to get that, so they don't feel cheated when they convert something they don't want for something they do desire, even though they lose value in the exchange. Both parties leave happy in the moment, and so it's a win-win. The other guy at the mechanic with me had a decently cheap repair. The quote I got was for the top tier repair. Ok, who honestly does top tier repairs on a 21 year old Saturn? If mine were as cheap as his, I would have probably just paid for the convenience, even though I could do it myself, to free my time for other things I prefer to do. They would make money; I would free up time. That's a win win. However, they offered me something that I refused to take and got no deal. Far too many people think that it's evil to seek self-satisfaction while they seek their own selfish interests. I only dated one woman who offered me things I considered a win, and so losing her was very difficult because nobody seems to hold a candle to her. I do most of my own work, when I get around to it, because I don't care enough to pay someone else when I'm ok with how things are. I've gone all winter with a broken heater because I'm fine wrapping up warmly and because nobody complains. It hasn't been important, and it hasn't been cheap enough to pay, at least until the off season. I'm willing to pay. I'm willing to pay for good value. I'm willing to change for good value. I know it when I see it.
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