What do you do when there's an auction you really want?

[Quacker]

Good Topic CB!

Nowadays an auction can be divided into just the two categories: -
"Hmmmm Nice to own, but not a MUST have" - the majority of which fall into.
Or the "Oh My Gosh I need that right now, this very second - that Cel needs to be in my collection" - which can best be surmised by that oh so rare but equally good feeling you receive in that instant when you see a new Cel/item pop up & time seems to freeze those first few seconds upon seeing it and all those long hours of searching start to pay off...

When I do discover a "OMG" Cel & the little euphoric rush passes, I start to plan an appropriate 'bid-strategy'. The first thing I do is decide upon an 'Market price' that is an average price of similar cels and from that, work out a maximum or 'ceiling' price I would be willing to pay for it. This price takes in both my own personal preferences (the character/s shown, the scene, series etc.) as well as the physical properties of the cel, such as the age of cel, any damage etc as well as taking into account personal circumstances (bills/payments/trades due & any incoming cheques and payments).
Once I work out the Max.bid amount, I write it down on a post-it & stick it on the MacBook - this is important as it provides me with a barrier, a limit so I do not over-spend. It is a horrible feeling to actually win an auction, but then know you have over-spent in order to win. That bitter-sweet feeling will forever remain with that Cel for as long as you have it in your possession.
Like Rei-J, I too deliberately keep a seperate window browser open on that particular auction & refresh periodically throughout the day.

Each "OMG" auction is different and getting the timing right on when to place my bid does have its advantages. In most instances I place a bid a day or two after finding the auction, though not placing the maximum amount, but near enough to it. I start fully watching the auction about 15/20mins before it is due to close, refreshing every minute or so.
Having worked on a trading floor, if a bidding war does break out, I don't stress or get overly excited but treat it as business as usual such as placing a set of Buy/Sell instructions on a group of securities.
If my initial bid succumbs to another Bidder, I will immediately place my maximum amount. I have said it previously, but my pet peeve when it comes to YHJ auctions is the incremental 1,000 JPY bids some Japanese bidders place each time the auction is 2/3 minutes from closing.
If my Ceiling amount is still not enough, then I will "walk away" - again that is a trading euphemism, but it works; I do not even stick around to see the closing price. Somebody was simply willing to pay more than I am willing to offer

[ToriPagac]

i bid right away otherwise i get too excited and my cerebral palsy causes me to mess up (this has happened a few times)