Value and worth, originally uploaded by Thorsten Becker.
Say, how much do you think you’re worth? Maybe $8 an hour? Or $50/h? Or $150/h? How about $45,000 a year? Or $100,000? I think you can tell where I am going. There are several value systems we’re dealing with frequently, the most influential being our income. How much we are worth to our employer is measured by our salary. And if we’re unemployed it is measured by our previous pay rate and the currently applicable unemployment payout. And if we’re self employed? Then we have to measure ourselves against those with similar products/services/offers and judge that against what we feel our time and effort may be worth. There is literally a price on our life, but is this really what we are “worth”? Let’s see what the word “worth” means. Merriam-Webster defines it as following:
1 a: monetary value — ‘farmhouse and lands of little worth’ b: the equivalent of a specified amount or figure — ‘a dollar’s worth of gas’
2: the value of something measured by its qualities or by the esteem in which it is held — ‘a literary heritage of great worth’
3 a: moral or personal value — ‘trying to teach human worth’ b: merit , excellence — ‘a field in which we have proved our worth’
4: wealth , riches
As you notice each definition is directly connected to the word “value”. The more valuable something is the more it is worth. A diamond is worth more than a ruby. Gold is worth more than silver, a Ferrari more than a Toyota, a Renoir more than a local painter’s work. But what defines the value of each of these items? A diamond is more valuable than a ruby because it takes a lot more effort to extract (usually one carat of diamond per tonne of rock), it is harder and more durable than a ruby and once cut skilfully shines with an intense inner fire. Gold is scarcer than silver hence takes more effort to find. It does not tarnish and also has a sort of inner fire. Going over to the Ferrari, here we have a precision sports car that requires a great deal of skill to manufacture. This makes it also scarce, incurs high production cost and is therefore highly coveted as compared to a run-off-the-mill Toyota.
Now how about that Renoir painting, what makes it worth more than our local painter’s work? Is it his skill with the brush, his eye for detail, the paint he used? Wikipedia says about Renoir’s work:
Renoir’s paintings are notable for their vibrant light and saturated color, most often focusing on people in intimate and candid compositions. The female nude was one of his primary subjects. In characteristic Impressionist style, Renoir suggested the details of a scene through freely brushed touches of color, so that his figures softly fuse with one another and their surroundings.
His initial paintings show the influence of the colorism of Eugène Delacroix and the luminosity of Camille Corot. He also admired the realism of Gustave Courbet and Édouard Manet, and his early work resembles theirs in his use of black as a color. As well, Renoir admired Edgar Degas’ sense of movement. Another painter Renoir greatly admired was the 18th century master François Boucher.
I greatly admire his paintings for the qualities mentioned above. But I equally admire the painting of a Mountain on a gray and rainy day that a distant relative (I believe my great granduncle) produced and that hung for decades in my grandparents’ apartment and is now in my possession. I equally admire the work of numerous modern illustrators such as Shaun Tan, Fred Gambino, James Paick, etc.; I own books showcasing their art. However, my chances of ever owning an original Renoir are rather slim considering that two of his paintings sold for over $70 Million dollars. Can I sell my relative’s painting for an equal sum? Impossible. How about that local painter’s work? Depending on his/her renown he/she may receive a few hundred to a few thousand dollars, but certainly nowhere near the millions. So is there any logical explanation for this vast difference in monetary value, say scarcity, skill or quality? Every original painting is scarce, it exists only once. There are many skilled painters and many display great quality work. So what could it be? Without getting into full psychological detail I’ll state ‘perception’ (I am also deliberately leaving out the whole ‘art as investment’ aspect). Renoir’s paintings are perceived as highly desirable. That perception entices those with great wealth to put a value on such paintings that far exceeds reason thus artificially creating an object of unprecedented value. There is a certain tangible base for this perception such as originality for its time, the age of the painting and the cultural value (here is some background regarding art appraisal). But on the most important level – the human level, the emotional level — there is no difference between Renoir’s work and that of talented artists that often struggle to garner any recognition.
Taking all this into consideration the conclusion is that your value, your worth is not tied in any form or manner to your income, your monetary worth. You are not worth less because you earn less than someone else of comparable skill (or in extreme ‘worthless’ if you earn nothing at this point). We may “know” this, claiming it to be common sense, but we often don’t actually consciously accept it because of lack of acknowledgment. I often see very artistic, creative and skilled people struggling to make ends meet as they desperately try to gain any considerable recognition. I have several artist friends who are very talented yet work low paying day jobs (for intrinsic psychological reasons), are therefore hardly able to pay their bills and often end up neglecting what’s so important to them, their art. This can turn into a vicious cycle, especially if they are soft spoken and timid. Self doubt and dwindling self esteem (self worth) are often the result.
What to do? Regarding my own friends I look for opportunities to express that their work is valuable to me and that they are valuable artists; their creations are no less admirable (valuable) than those of any other artist (including Renoir) and I frequently express this verbally as well as monetarily. Where appropriate I try to speak for them, presenting their work to others who may cherish it as well (and potentially commission their work). If you know fellow artists that lack attention and recognition can you think of ways to show them how you, personally, value them and their work? If they tend to be reticent it can help tremendously to speak for them at times, recommending and presenting their work to others. They are worth it — you are worth it.
For another interesting article concerning value and worth (from a business perspective, also helpful to artists) click here.
Photo: The photo used for this article is of the former Cominghome Interior showroom offering mid-century modern furniture (they’ve recently acquired a new showroom). Here, pieces that have been regarded as old and worthless by some find grateful new admirers and buyers. It was taken by me and I’ve added my personal vision to it via Photoshop to boost the mood and feel.
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That was a great post, thanks for writing. I agree with much of what you say — why DOES value have to be attached to often to salary, position and power? A creative persons worth should always be respected — whether they’re starving or not — because of the value their work brings to individuals and society, even if they are struggling financially, they perhaps are rich personally and creatively. Unfortunately, our school system doesn’t see the same value in the creative arts as do many creative professionals and parents.
Thanks for reminding us!
I have said to my wife many times, we may not be wealthy, but our lives are rich.
Jason
Thank you for your comment Jason. Money is power and the more money someone has the more powerful he is, that’s the mentality that got us into the current recession. Of course we all need money to pay our bills and obtain sustenance but our value system has skewed the priorities so much that things have run completely out of control. And that ties right in with that excellent point of yours, the lack of fostering creativity in schools. Growing up in Germany I can say that up until 4th grade creative activities played an important role but after that it was relegated as somewhat of an afterthought (though I took extended courses in high school, but much of it was theory). Children are allowed to be creative because that’s how they learn but once we get older we should be more rational and practical. Art enables us to express ourselves, our feelings and emotions, our likes and dislikes and we can use it to call out problems and issues. That’s why artists are often persecuted, their art banned or even destroyed. Art can foster revolution, change and upheaval of establishment. Art can enable us to question things, see them differently, think about who we are, what we do, how we do it. It can slow us down and reconsider our priorities. That can be a major issue in consumer nations, don’t want people to slow down too much, consumers consume best when they are not thinking, when there is no need to question why they need this or that (until they run out of money that is). That’s how I personally see it.
Thanks again for some more food for thought, really appreciate it. And I share your philosophy, I rather live a rich live than be wealthy. Wealth is here today and gone tomorrow (I am sure many out there can attest to this right now) but a life lived happily stays with you till the end.
This post makes me think immediately of my ‘past life’ in the corporate world which felt very stressful at times because upper management, who most of the time ran like headless chickens, made the most money and received sizable annual bonuses that dwarfed some of the annual SALARIES of their subordinates.
I recall watching managers run from meeting to meeting, dining clients at the most expensive local restaurants, and hopping on planes to attend meetings as they fit in a day of golf and of course, their Ritz Carlton or “W” hotel was paid for by the company. Lay offs came and went but those at the top still lived the life as dear friends of mine had to pack their cubicle in tears and close a project on a whim due to management ‘cutting back’.
It started to depress me to work in that environment, watching hard working colleagues get booted as wealthy upper management refused to cut back when it came to how they worked — they’d cut their direct reports, people they knew had kids and homes, over taking anything out of their cookie jar. It worked for years this way and I still remember the heartbreak and fear my colleagues experiences on “RIF” day. The last company I was with had a RIF (reduction in workforce) every 3 months for at least 3 years in a row. To say this didn’t impact everyone working there on a daily basis would be an understatement.
In the end, our value and worth has to come from within us, we have to believe in ourselves before anyone else will believe in us and even then, some still won’t believe and discredit our value, our work, etc.
I guess the key is to have a supportive team in your world — you know your family, close friends, online friends, etc. Have a corner that is yours and yours alone that you can go to for strength, courage, validation when you’re down, etc. I think having a small community that gets us and loves us is the best way to remember our worth and that our value has nothing to do with money.
Oh and I also think that whatever you are doing for work, you need to be in an environment where you feel you are making a positive contribution. Working for a company constantly reducing their workforce only chips away at how one feels about their work.
Ultimately that is why I went freelance and left the mother ship which I can report, is sinking today. I may only write a blog for a living (vs. being some big heavy at a company), but I’m happy, helping others, and most of all see that I am worth something!
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I found this article in my search to analyze a marketing/business problem we are all facing. In this recession, somehow we all have devalued our products and services in the hope of capturing the only buyers that are left buying. In the process we have reduced ourselves to a mere commodity. I, being a marketer by trade and a small business owner, refused to participate in price wars. Now that those others have deminished the value of our entire industry, I find myself justifying to consumers the value of going with a full service company that didn’t bid out their work, choose and packaged the lowest bids and present a proposal full of substandard work. I want to build back up the value of our industry and the services offered. (We build pools and outdoor living spaces) So, it seems to me, in order to build value I would have to go back to the components of your value equation and build up “worth” (…is it worth it to them to pay more?) before they perceive the value. A difficult task to transform this industry generated image from the “common denominator” that is: a commodity back to where it needs to be to have a sustainable business. Otherwise why do it. Your thoughts on this strategy in these tough times?
Hi Julia, thank you for your comments. You bring up an interesting point concerning value and worth: how to re-establish the fair value of something once it’s perceived worth has diminished. I am a firm believe in quality. Quality has it’s price and that price will be paid by those that perceive it’s worth. Despite living in a consumer society I think not much has changed over the years. Yes, consumerism has had a significant impact on overall market prices on all sorts of commodities but I think the core values have been left pretty much untouched. Let’s say a certain product sells for $100. We’ll have definite buyers (quality buyers, early adopters) who purchase the product right away, sideliners who want to first establish the value of a product for themselves, and then the outside market composed of buyers who are not interested in the product or can’t afford it. If I drop the price to $50 many of the sideliners will start to buy the product right away as it’s apparently a bargain now. A good amount of buyers within the outside markets start to jump in as well. But I may start losing some of the initial definite buyers as they feel they’ve been cheated. Drop the price further to say $30 and the bargain hunters will be all over it. I may sell a lot more but my revenue might actually decrease as production increases and the market demands a constant supply. I may also lose most of the original definite buyers for good.
They say quality has its price and that’s what I tried to illustrate with the example above. But once a quality product has been diluted, cheapened and turned into a mass market commodity it’s very difficult indeed to sell it at a higher price point. I can always correct down but correcting up again is not well perceived — unless there is some form of justification. A cheap product usually becomes a self-seller, it doesn’t require much effort to sell. A more expensive product next to it will need more effort to sell, but usually only if I target an audience that always looks for a lower price (sideliners and outside market, which has now become the primary market). If I am selling to the definite buyers while pretty much bypassing the other two groups I will certainly sell less and probably need a bit more skill for the sell but the reward will be a fair, sustainable value. The buyers will perceive it as “worth it”. I believe it still comes down, as it always has, to finding the right buyers. Part of the problem could be that we perceive a larger market due to the increased penetration of different buyer groups through to cheaper products. Refocusing on the original core market may yield better results. I am no market expert by any means but I am speaking from experience and observation.
To sum it up your outlined strategy in my eyes is well worth it. When it comes to commodities the right people will always pay the right price, even if it is above the current market price, often especially because it is above market price as it must be better than all these other products, it must be worth it.