Tuesday, August 21, 2007

Revisited: Values and the World of Ebay

I love eBay; I'm a big fan. I love the endless possibilities it has brought into my life. I can now make money off my old VCDs instead of seeing them buried under a thick layer of dust. I love the many doors it has opened up. Judging from the success of the company, I'm definitely not alone in reveling in the wonders of eBay.

One recent comment made me revisit my values which had unwittingly changed with the evolution of online auction. I have always been in the habit of developing hasty passions. 10 years ago, I thought it would be really cool if I can be a guitarist. With that in mind, I trotted into a guitar shop and bought a relatively expensive yet cool-looking acoustic guitar. 10 weeks later, I decided I neither have the talent nor patience for it. Like my many other impulse purchases, it got shoved to a corner of my room. A year later, my best friend picked up the same interest. I remembered my ‘abandoned’ guitar and insisted she take it (pocket money was limited and hence this was a nice gesture). In fact, I literally shoved the guitar into her hands. Fast forward to today, I may still want her to take my guitar, but I may also be open to the idea of selling it to her at a discount (on eBay).

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