Sociopath Community

"I don't think the stuff would be any more valuable if I struggle for it."

I disagree. After a 3 day long event called "The Crucible" you become a Marine and handed a small eagle, globe and anchor. Almost every Marine around me broke to tears when they received theirs. You can buy these at the Marine mart for 3 dollars. I still have my original framed.

The value in that is the accomplishment, not the item.

Is a $10,000 paycheck more valuable than $10,000 you find on the street?

Yes, the man hours put into the check makes it obviously more important. 

Does winning a gold medal for something you put a lot of blood, sweat and tears into have the same personal value to you as buying one at your local hardware store?

Being proud of an accomplishment is not the same as finding value in a material object.

Also, my pride in my own accomplishments aren't affected by whether anyone else has "struggled" with the same thing. The OP was about poverty and material objects, which is what my reply was referring to.

Is the gold medal not a material object?

It's a symbolic representation of what you actually value, which is the accomplishment.

Which is why most people wouldn't say they're grateful to have the shiny object, they would say they're proud of having won it.

So, you are aware then that the gold medal you earned has more symbolic value than the gold medal you bought. This can also relate to life in a way.

Someone who struggled through poverty to achieve success in their current situation will likely appreciate it more than someone who simply had everything handed to them on a silver platter.

It's easier to take things for granted when you didn't earn them. A lot of people, particularly those born into wealth, seem to do that.

More sentimental value, sure, but not more actual value.

Putting in 10 hours of work for $1000 doesn't increase the value of $1000 by 10 hours, it increases the cost of $1000 by 10 hours.

"A lot of people, particularly those born into wealth, seem to do that."

To the point of Affluenza even:

"Psychologist G. Dick Miller argued during Couch's trial that the teen was a product of too much privilege and had never been reprimanded for his actions and therefore was not responsible for his actions, calling him a product of 'affluenza.'"