I don't sit down and decide "here's how much I'm going to pay the plumber." I call a plumber and get a quote. I can keep going until it feels worth it.

My enlightenment comes from talking to a bunch of plumbers and hearing what they're gonna charge. That's the market rate.

If I hire an employee and they get good at their job and someone else offers them a 40% raise, they'll probably leave. That's a lot of money.

Some companies care about retention, most don't really.