Sublime

If we pay for something before consuming it, the actual consumption of it feels almost painless. There is no pain of paying at that time, nor any worrying about paying in the future.

This is how FAIRNESS impacts our perception of value. Most people above age five, and not actively engaged in politics, understand the concept of fairness. We recognize it instantly when we see it or talk about

In most real transactions, however, the owner of an item believes it to be worth more than the buyer.

It’s hard to pay more for the speedy but highly skilled person, simply because there’s less effort being shown, less effort being observed, less effort being valued.

Fairness is a function of effort and effort is shown through transparency.

Fundamentally, when we value effort over outcome, we’re paying for incompetence. Although it is actually irrational, we feel more rational, and more comfortable, paying for incompetence.

If people were perfectly rational agents, if the brain weren't so bounded, then writing down the last two digits of their Social Security numbers should have no effect on their auction bids. In other words, a student whose Social Security number ended with a low-value figure (such as 10) should be willing to pay roughly the same price as someone wi