People who think a lot about economics often respond to others as unusual.
For example, I recently ended my 10K run registration in Astoria, Oregon. As part of the registration process, we had to choose when selecting a race package (particularly there is a race bib with a built-in time tracker). In the days leading up to the race, there were several windows for time and the option to pick up on the race day on site. This last option had a “monastery fee” of around $25. And soon, when I realized I had to pay to pick up at a convenient time and place, my immediate response was, “Oh, that’s fine.”
My reasoning was along these lines. Thousands of people run at this event every year. Race organizers must set up and prepare all the people in a rather short time in the morning of the run. Before this first pack of racers happens, encourage people to already pick up race packets and be ready, and do a lot to streamline the process. If thousands of people appeared to finally get the packet on the morning of the event, it seriously used the process to gum. To minimize that, the fees make sense. This limits the number of people who need to go through this process at the last minute, and those who make slow pickups tend to be the ones who value that option most.
This is often the case that I feel grateful for Subrice and other ISNs are free to use.
Another time, the response came when I first started working at South Carolina Medical College in Charleston a few years ago. Downtown’s Mascon campus is included in terms of gyms. While the public can obtain membership at this gym, MUSM employees, faculty and students have earned a discounted membership rate as a perk. A colleague said, “I don’t know why I got a discount. I work here so I need to use the gym for free!” But I was pleased that it wasn’t free. Musc has tens of thousands of employees, Studonts and Faculty. I don’t want to go to a gym where tens of thousands of people can stop by for free at any time! Even with the fees, it was usually quite packed. To be freed with it has become unusable.
Another simple example that comes to mind is airport parking. Whenever you have to jump out of Minneapolis Airport and put your car there, you usually have to go up and down the car’s lane. If people can park their cars at the airport and leave them there for free, they will find parking spaces and deploy them from a slightly more laborious area to demand divine intervention.
There are two different questions and I think people can easily answer them. The first question is, “If I personally can get this for free, would I like it?” (Answer: Yes, obviously!) But the second and changing question is, “Do I want to live in a world where Evyonne can claim this for free?” The answer to that question is almost always emphasized.
When I get a subthing, I really cherish it. Understanding ideas such as trade-offs, opportunities and rarity is just one way to broaden your vision and improve your appreciation experience. And I think that’s a subject the world can use a little more recently.
