When it comes to decorating my house, I consider myself a "qualitative methodologist"—someone who believes in considering many factors before judging the real value of an item. The most important considerations are what I call the three Cs: cost, conceptual value, and corporeal sensation.

Cost, of course, is the actual price of an object. Conceptual value refers to facts about an item, such as its being the work of a famous designer or having been owned by the Queen of Siam. Corporeal sensation is your body's purely physical reaction to seeing, feeling, hearing, touching or tasting something.

Most of us focus too heavily on one or two of these Cs, and that's like sitting on a stool with fewer than three legs.   

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Common errors...and how to start emphasizing true quality.