Some things are expensive because they’re valuable. Others are valuable only because they’re expensive.

Price tells two different stories and never labels which one it is telling. Some things cost a lot because they are hard to make and last for years. Others cost a lot because the cost is the point, and paying it is what you are buying, since anyone can see what it cost. Once you can tell those apart, half of advertising stops working on you.

With the next thing you badly want, ask what it would be worth if nobody knew you had it. If the answer is still high, that is real value. If the answer drops, you have found out what you were actually paying for.