The relativity of values causes us to use money irrationally. I go to the supermarket to buy a $15 pen, and the clerk smiles and says, “You can buy this pen for $7 if you walk 5 minutes from here.” Then, most people walk five minutes and buy a $15 pen for $7. But if you want to buy a $1,000 jacket and the clerk smiles and says, “You can get a $992 jacket in five minutes from here,” most people simply buy the $1,000 jacket. Reasonably, walking for 5 minutes equals the effort, and the profit of $8 is the same. However, people might go to a store that sells pens cheaper, but not for the jacket, because the discount rate is too low. In other words, the relativity of comparing values makes us act irrationally. The pen’s discount rate is 55%, and the jacket’s is only 0.8%. Yet, the total amount is the same for all $8, and the effort to gain that profit is identical. Attitudes and misconceptions about consumption influence how we build wealth. - Joseph’s “just my thoughts”
When you exchange a department store gift voucher or any brand coupon for cash (currency), the par value written on the certificate is reduced and replaced. Department store gift vouchers can only be used at department stores, while cash offers different usage values that can be utilized without restrictions within the country. In other words, the relative value of the gift voucher compared to cash is taken into account. At this point, the difference in the exchange range creates this discounted value, even though the securities maintain the same trading par value . In reality, the market value of payment methods is determined by the scope of use, trading objects, and exchange period. This is why money is also regarded as one of the goods. In accounting, the value base is CASH . This distinction arises because cash ( fiat currency ) holds the highest value in use within a country, owing to its compulsory circulation power . - Joseph’s “just my thoughts”