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There were three Fisher-Price Little People sets from the early '70s: the farm, the schoolhouse and the McDonald's. They had all the little wooden people and accessories, though not the original packaging. The fact that all the pieces were there, and that they were in pretty good shape, was amazing. The Little People we had as kids were scattered all over the neighborhood.

I walked past that table over and over, nostalgic and looking for a reason to buy. I certainly don't have any place to display them. Would my nieces play with them when they came over? Their Little People are big and plastic and even have arms—and they are too large to fit down small windpipes. Maybe they could be resold on eBay for a tidy profit.

In the end, reason won. The Little People weren't worth the space or the money, or the hassle of buying and reselling.

Maybe consumers aren't able to verbalize their decision-making, but they go through a similar internal discussion with every purchase they make. They plan their errand route so it takes them past the station with the least expensive gas. They're splurging on swing sets or above-ground pools because they aren't taking a summer vacation. They're skipping appetizers and desserts, and sometimes full service.

And it's not just about money. It's about convenience, quality, time, effort, experience, the list goes on.

Personal example: We ate at Chili's the other night, and I had the Buffalo Chicken Salad. We have all the ingredients for the Buffalo Chicken Salad in our refrigerator, right down to the breaded chicken. Hardly seems worth the drive, much less the cost, when I could have chopped and tossed in my own kitchen. But after a day of working outside, the last thing I wanted to do was prepare my own dinner. Chili's is close, and it's in the same lot as the Home Depot, where we were going to be anyway. So it was worth it.

Our effort to help you get in the heads of consumers and get on the plus-side of their decision is here: “Make Me an Offer.” With the help of Research Director Terri Solomon, Senior Editor David Farkas combed through research on how and why people spend their hard-earned money—or not. The common theme comes down to what do they think is worth it. Your assignment, should you choose to accept it, is to use those insights and solutions to make your food and experience worthy.

By the way, I looked up those Little People sets on eBay when I got home. The good news is that there are plenty of them out there if I ever change my mind. But they aren't worth nearly as much as I thought they would be—at least not without the original packaging.