I’ve written about this topic before but it’s rarely from the most popular perspective. People love to hate vanity sizing, but the logic is topsy-turvy. People want companies to use the “real” sizes instead of trying to trick people into buying more because they feel an ego boost from a smaller size. The problem is that vanity sizing works! And vanity sizing works because people are vain.

We like to buy smaller sizes. We like to feel smaller. I once got a fortune cookie that inexplicably read, “You sound nice … like you lost weight or something.” Best … cookie … ever.

Read the full version of this story on a single page here: We sound like hypocrites criticizing vanity sizing.