I’m a snob, and I live in Seattle, a city full of snobs. Our snobbery extends to almost every aspect of life: food, coffee, film and literature. Seattle has numerous high-end coffee shops, boutique restaurants and copious amounts of independent music. But why? What’s the point of criticizing everything you eat, drink, see or read?

Snobs are known under another name: mavens. Malcolm Gladwell uses the term in his book, The Tipping Point, to describe people who gather a great deal of information about cultural phenomena and then evaluate it based on quality. So snobs, or mavens, can help determine what is worthwhile in this world.

That’s why we have critics. Restaurant and movie critics, although often despised, help us make difficult decisions. There are macro snobs — professional critics who make decisions for many people ­— and micro snobs. Micro snobs are people like that guy you know who listens to bands you’ve never heard of or your cousin who drinks only 100 percent Arabica coffee. I lived in Italy, and I snobbishly turn my nose up at most attempts at Italian food. I may get laughed at, but I eat well.

Snobs congregate in the cities. No offense to my suburban brethren, but people are generally willing to settle for less beyond the city. That’s why there’s no Olive Garden or outlet malls in Seattle proper.

We need snobs. Everyone who appreciates good beer, fajitas or indie rock owes some of their enjoyment to a snob. The world is full of mediocrity. If something can be done cheaper, easier and with less conviction, people will attempt it. It’s the job of a maven to keep people from reading forgettable books and drinking stale coffee. Snobs are quality sheriffs for anyone who is stressed out by decisions.

When it’s time for you to make an important purchase, like a computer, you call up your nerdy friend who has a NASA command center for a desktop. When you’re looking for good new music, you talk to your friend with tight jeans and thick-rimmed glasses.

Snobbery can easily get out of hand. Now that snobby blogs on every subject are multiplying daily, you can get dozens of fierce opinions with a click. Snobbery stops getting helpful when anyone can instantly see their opinions “published” online. But a diversity of opinions is important to good quality in products, especially if authors, restaurateurs and manufacturers listen to their myriad critics.

Sites like Goodreads, RottenTomatoes, CitySearch and Yelp will present you with hundreds of opinions, some poorly written. You can form a general idea of what you’re dealing with in a product before you risk trying it yourself.

Mavens are pioneers because they are willing to try the untried and taste the untasted. We all adhere to a single truth: the greatest excitement is not being able to confirm someone else’s opinion, but to form our own. That’s why we’re all listening, drinking and reading for the next big thing. We want to be the culinary and literary Magellans of our social circles.

There is great excitement in finding something so sweet that you are torn between sharing it and hiding it for yourself. But there is also a great sense of disappointment when everyone thinks they’ve discovered something you’ve been secretly enjoying for months.

This is why snobs need to get off their soapboxes and keep looking for good things. Snobs and mavens are best utilized when they don’t get offended. Their genius often goes unnoticed, so do a snob in your life a favor and thank them for their strong opinions. They’ll give you even better music and restaurant tips.

Reach columnist Jackson Rohrbaugh at opinion@dailyuw.com.