Note how the mind can exaggerate scarcity. If something is not very scarce, like a single dollar bill or even food in America, then why people spend so much time worrying about it? Beware a false exaggeration of scarcity. The next time you get to an ice cream store just after it closed and feel the aggravation of not obtaining what you wanted, remind yourself that while ice cream is scarce by definition in economics (after all, people do pay for it), it is not very scarce and you really did not need that ice cream cone anyway! Another example of an exaggeration of scarcity is when someone spends more time and money looking for something he lost -- because he exaggerates its value -- than the item costs to buy again. | Note how the mind can exaggerate scarcity. If something is not very scarce, like a single dollar bill or even food in America, then why people spend so much time worrying about it? Beware a false exaggeration of scarcity. The next time you get to an ice cream store just after it closed and feel the aggravation of not obtaining what you wanted, remind yourself that while ice cream is scarce by definition in economics (after all, people do pay for it), it is not very scarce and you really did not need that ice cream cone anyway! Another example of an exaggeration of scarcity is when someone spends more time and money looking for something he lost -- because he exaggerates its value -- than the item costs to buy again. |