IKEA effect - inability to value your own creation appropriately
#75: you're biased in evaluating the value of things you created by yourself.
People attribute a disproportionately higher value to things that they build themselves.
IKEA? — yes, you are right. It is the name of the company that makes you happy to build your furniture by yourself.
People often choose to show off their work more often—(trying to talk about it). Assuming it will interest others just because they think it(the work or the end product) has more value —just because they did it on their own.
People tend to value (disproportionately) more than its actual value, especially when we’ve put in more sweat and time building a thing.
Because,
You become emotionally attached to it. You built it. You created it. It becomes your brain-child. So obviously your offspring is more important than the other’s. You want to see your creation winning.
You spent time and energy on it. You don’t want to see it go wasted. So you will find reasons to keep it around.
The sense of accomplishment after the hard work makes you feel the thing like a trophy. A souvenir —even though its actual value is zero.
When you invest yourself into something, you feel that thing like a part of yourself and you think more about it. This pushes you to resist giving up on it.
Well, there could be more reasons in Psychology and behavioral science.
But the point you have to remember is
you’ll show biases when valuing something you created or in which you invested a considerate resource of yours.
No wonder so many founders and innovators fail to evaluate their products right.
Set yourself aside from your emotional attachment to a thing that had too much of your involvement — when you’re asked to value it. or Ask an expert.
Some relevant from BW Archives.
