Published September 08, 2025 | By Alyx E, Founder of Collectors MD

Have you ever opened a box of cards—maybe just a blaster or mega box—chasing that one big hit for your PC? By the fifth or sixth box, the thrill begins to fade, and defeat starts creeping in. Then, suddenly—maybe in the very last pack of the final box—something catches your eye. A shimmer peeks out from behind a stack of base cards—a design you haven’t seen yet. You dramatically slow roll it, heart pounding, and reveal a beautiful short print or parallel of a player you genuinely love.

For that brief, fleeting moment, you’re overwhelmed with joy. But almost instantly, instinct takes over—you race to 130point or CardLadder to check the comps. And within just a few moments, the feeling shifts. What you thought might be worth at minimum, a few hundred dollars raw—perhaps even more graded, turns out to be just enough to barely cover the $60 box it came from. And the sting is even sharper knowing you already ripped through several boxes just to get there.

Then the spiral begins. That inner voice starts whispering: Should I keep ripping? Maybe I’ll hit even bigger in the next box.

That’s the trap so many of us fall into—the slow creep from just one more to losing count of how many we’ve opened. The initial joy of pulling a card we genuinely like gets swallowed up by the disappointment of realizing how much we’ve spent chasing it. Suddenly, the math overshadows the moment.

But it doesn’t have to be that way. The real catch-22 is that the joy was there all along—you didn’t need another box, a comp check, or a bigger hit to validate it. When you pull a card that truly belongs in your PC, that deserves to be enough. That’s when intention comes in. If it fits the filters and criteria you set for yourself—whether that’s a favorite team, player, design, subset, or simply something that sparks joy—then it already has value. Maybe not necessarily monetary value, but meaning.

I was reminded of this recently when I let myself rip a few Select Basketball mega boxes and pulled a Stephen Curry Crown Jewels super short print. My heart skipped a beat. The card was stunning. It checked all the boxes: great player, sleek design, desirable set, and a rarity that felt special the moment I saw it.

Then I checked comps—$60–70 at best. That’s when I stopped myself. I realized the number was irrelevant. I wasn’t planning to flip it. I wasn’t even planning to grade it. I reminded myself that I was ripping for passion, not profit.

Even if the market says otherwise, a card holds lasting value because of what it means to you, not what it’s worth.

For me, if I’m going to rip, it has to be mindful and intentional now. It’s not about chasing or proving anything to anyone in my inner circle or on social media. It’s about the purity of the hobby—the joyful moments that make you smile, the cards that make you pause, the pieces that mean something only to you.

And that’s the shift so many of us need. Because it’s easy to forget, in a hobby that constantly tells us to grade, to flip, to chase, to compare—that the real measure of a card isn’t in the dollar amount it commands—it’s in the story it carries. It’s in the way your heart jumps when you pull it, the memory of the moment, and the meaning it holds long after the comps have changed.

At the end of the day, the hobby isn’t supposed to leave you with a pit in your stomach—it’s supposed to give you something to hold, to cherish, and maybe even to pass down one day.

When you let joy outweigh value, you realize that sometimes one card, pulled with intention, can be worth infinitely more than a mountain of empty boxes.

#CollectorsMD
The value of a card isn’t what the market says—it’s the joy it gives you.

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Published June 30, 2025 | By Alyx E, Founder of Collectors MD

In Episode 3 of The Collector’s Compass, we sat down with Mya—aka @bullseye_breaks—to talk about collecting with intention and the power of meaning over manipulation. Mya embodies so many of the values we stand for at Collectors MD: intention over impulse, connection over chaos, meaning over manipulation. Her collection doesn’t just reflect what’s trendy—it reflects what matters to her.

When we brought up the Collectors MD mission, the message around meaning over manipulation clicked instantly for Mya. For Mya, it’s not about profit or prestige, it’s about collecting things that genuinely meant something to her—cards that feel personal, emotional, rooted in memory, not marketing and hype.

But here’s where it gets nuanced. Because “meaning” can be manipulated too.

After sharing the clip from the episode, we received some thoughtful feedback from a supporter and friend, Dave—aka @Iowa_Dave_SportsCards—who said: “Sometimes it feels like the promise of ‘meaning’ is in itself manipulative.” And honestly? He’s right. Even “meaning” can become an internal sales pitch if we’re not careful—a way to justify overspending or chasing under the guise of something deeper. That’s the dark side of the message we’re trying to promote: when emotional resonance is exploited, not honored.

You see it everywhere if you start looking closely. A card described as “iconic” or “historic” or a “must-have grail” to inflate urgency. An emotional memory used to push someone into closing a deal they can’t afford. Even phrases like “for the PC” or “nostalgic hit” can become shields we hide behind when we don’t want to face the compulsive nature of a decision.

When meaning becomes a weapon—or a marketing hook—it loses its value.
It stops being authentic and starts becoming a tool for manipulation.

When we justify every purchase by calling it “meaningful,” we risk hiding the same compulsions behind better language. That’s why we’re not here to define what should be meaningful to you. We’re here to help you slow down and ask why—
Why this purchase? Why now? Do I truly need this—or do I just want it? Can I afford this? Or am I trying to fill a void? Am I buying with clarity—or being sold an illusion?

That’s the kind of intention we’re after. Not forced meaning. Not guilt-wrapped sentiment. Just real, mindful reflection.

Because the line between collecting with joy and collecting out of emotional dependency is razor thin. There’s a huge difference between saying, “I’ve been waiting to complete this set for months, and now it’s finally here,” and, “I need this card right now or I’ll spiral.”

The minute a card or any item for that matter stops being a want and becomes a need—especially one you feel driven to chase without clarity or context—that’s when the slope gets slippery.

So let’s keep asking the hard questions. Let’s keep checking in. Let’s keep reminding ourselves that if the “meaning” behind an item is just another way to justify overspending, then the item isn’t the issue—the story we’re telling ourselves is.

Collecting with meaning doesn’t mean every card has to change your life. But you should know why you’re buying it—and that “why” should come from you, not a breaker, not a hype reel, not the live chat, and definitely not your fear of missing out.

So take a beat. Take a breath. And ask yourself what this all really means—to you.

Collect with real intention. Not just for the story—but for yourself.

#CollectorsMD
Meaning is powerful—but only when it’s honest.

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