Have you noticed how everything around us is getting a little, well… crappier? And I don’t mean the obvious big things like climate change, wars, wildfires, or the machinations of greedy billionaires. I’m thinking about the smaller things, the things we deal with every day.
You know — the things we buy, the service we get in stores, hotels and public transportation. Doesn’t it feel like everything is a lot crappier compared to what it used to be? And it’s not like we don’t spend a lot of money. We do, maybe even more than ever before. But somehow, we’re getting less and less for our money.
Why do we feel that even when we throw more money around, we don’t get the good stuff anymore?
I’ve been noticing this for a while now, and I’ve been trying to figure out what’s going on. Recently, I heard about the “Doorman Fallacy,” and I think it’s a good explanation for what’s happening everywhere.
What is the doorman fallacy?
In case you’ve never heard of this effect, in a nutshell, it describes what happens when people desperate to squeeze a few extra dollars out of a business misjudge the value, worth and scope of a particular role.
In the case of the doorman, the problem is as follows: When asked what a doorman does in a luxury hotel, people unfamiliar with the intricacies of the role are likely to answer that he opens the door for guests.