Sexy stiletto heels and other bedtime stories

She purchased them while on a backpacking trip to Italy and when one of those infamous Italian purse snatchers on a motorbike attacked her and tried to rob her of her belongings, she held on to that backpack so tightly, she ended up being dragged two blocks down Rome's cobblestone streets and suffered a nasty bruise on her head. But that backpack was still in her hands when the police arrived.

Did it contain her passport or money? Nope. They were both safely tucked away in her money belt. That backpack contained her strappy Italian shoes and they made it safely home with her to Canada. In real life, my friend much prefers donning "Hush Puppies", and being that stiletto heels are incredibly uncomfortable, she hardly ever wears them, but still… she can’t bring herself to give them away.

If you're reading this and you're not a woman, go ahead and replace the strappy sandals with "state of the art sound system" or "sports car". You'll immediately understand. Anything frivolous and unnecessary and downright wasteful and decadent fits the bill here, just as long as it makes your heart soar and lifts your spirits, at the mere sight of it.

It's the "thought" of what our possessions can do for us that sucks us into purchasing them. When a woman sees a pair of beautiful shoes, she sees the whole package; she sees herself in them, turning heads, strutting with confidence down the street and into the life she was always meant to lead. When a man sees himself behind the wheel of a Porsche, he sees himself as successful and accomplished, owner of the Midas touch.

What do those possessions have to do with real life? Absolutely nothing. And yet… we fall for their decadent allure every time. In his book "All Marketers are Liars", author Seth Godin states: "Every marketer tells a story. And, if they do it right, we believe them. We believe that wine tastes better in a $20 glass than a $1 glass. We believe that an $80,000 Porsche Cayenne is cooler than a $36,000 VW Touareg, which is virtually the same car. And believing it makes it true."

Every commercial, every print ad, every billboard on every highway tells a story. The story is a lie and we know it, but we go ahead and buy it; hook, line and sinker.

Have you ever noticed the advertisements for new condo developments? In every single billboard, the new owners are busy laughing, swimming, entertaining guests, looking out their impossibly gorgeous view to a river or a city skyline. Not one of them is paying their monthly mortgage or doing their laundry or cleaning the bathroom. Aren't those activities package and parcel of owning a property too? Of course! But who wants to see that?

So next time you're purchasing something, try to decipher what it is you're buying. Is it the actual item or is it the illusion behind it? Because, if it's just the illusion you're buying, you're simply paying double or triple for a story. And if that's all you're paying for, you've just been conned out of your money.