time is money?

[Khan]

http://www.csmonitor.com/2006/1006/p01s01-usec.html

"When I add my hourly rate, the time to cook at home, I can instead take my family out to dinner and it comes out pretty even,"

What is it with figuring an hourly cost for non-paid activity?

I suppose one can rationalize anything.

 

[Patrick]

May be, but he's not making $$ when he's not working. If he'd cooked the dinner he'd still have some tax-free cash (the difference between dining out and in) to invest for FIRE!

"When I add my hourly rate, the time to cook at home, I can instead take my family out to dinner and it comes out pretty even,"

 

[UncleHoney]

Let's see now, he's making his hourly rate while eating dinner. I wonder if he makes the same watching TV, mowing the grass and sleeping. With all that income he should ER without any problems at all. :

The thing these people are missing is that you won't eat every meal at home like you do when you eat out.

 

[Khan]

Let's see now, he's making his hourly rate while eating dinner. I wonder if he makes the same watching TV, mowing the grass and sleeping. With all that income he should ER without any problems at all. :

The thing these people are missing is that you won't eat every meal at home like you do when you eat out.

If I'm gardening or cooking I figure in hourly rate, but not if watching sports or shopping or golfing...?

 

[free4now]

If you are the kind of person who loves their job, has the ability to add overtime, and would really rather be working than preparing a meal, then okay. Eat out, work longer, and enjoy. Just make sure to deduct income and sales tax when figuring the value of your time.

As for me, I'd much rather be preparing a meal than sitting in a cubicle.

 

[Nords]

What is it with figuring an hourly cost for non-paid activity?

When you're ER'd your time is worthless...

 

[UncleHoney]

If I'm gardening or cooking I figure in hourly rate, but not if watching sports or shopping or golfing...?

OIC, you only figure in the hourly rate when there is work involved.

 

[Khan]

If you are the kind of person who loves their job, has the ability to add overtime, and would really rather be working than preparing a meal, then okay. Eat out, work longer, and enjoy. Just make sure to deduct income and sales tax when figuring the value of your time.

As for me, I'd much rather be preparing a meal than sitting in a cubicle.

Agreed.

But that isn't even the choice given.

They make comparisons between, say, two hours cooking and eating at home, and two hours driving to and fro and eating at a restaurant.

 

[rockyj]

Seems to me the only reasonable way to think about an hourly cost of time spent in preparing meals (or housework, yardwork, personal care, etc.), as opposed to procuring servcies for the same, is if there is an opportunity cost of not otherwise working for pay. If you would not otherwise be spending the time in question in work for pay, there is no opportunity cost of lost wages to offset the cost of the meal, lawn service, etc.

Of course, we often consider what we'd rather be doing with that time (as in "I'd rather be fishing, sleeping, at the movies", whatever) and there is implicit in such considerations a value that we place on our time. But that has nothing to do with an hourly rate of income lost and the resulting ability to to say "it doesn't really cost me any more" to procure the services of others.

 

[HFWR]

When you're ER'd your time is worthless...

Maybe the word is "priceless"...

 

[maddythebeagle]

I agree with free4now's take when working and Nord's when you are not

This entire "my time is so valuable" idea is a trap....I have to mention John Stossel of 20/20 (he had a story of how people spend their time and found that they really dont spend it so wisely)...He followed one family and found that their stress outside of work was more about just having too many cars and stuff....and they spent a lot of quality time simply watching tv and other non productive stuff......I believe simplifying your life is more important than finding more conveniences…..

 

[Spanky]

Eating out can be detrimental to your health (unless you order the healthy stuff). How much does that cost you?

 

[scrubradio]

Oh no...It just cost me $8.95 to fix a pb&j sandwich as a snack. I can't believe
it costs so much but after I figured in the cost of my time which of course is
inflated because I have such a high opinion of myself and the worth of my time
I realized that I should have got in the car and drove to McDonalds where it
would have cost me $175.00.

I know your thinking that is obsured but it is not. I still have to account for my
time invested right? Can't forget my hourly rate as well as the future cost on
my health.

This guy may get out of there for $17 with tip but where did his hourly rate go?
Did his time suddenly become worthless?

 

[donheff]

"When I add my hourly rate, the time to cook at home, I can instead take my family out to dinner and it comes out pretty even,"

DW works at home a lot so she can turn this around a bit. "When I add my hourly rate, blah, blah, I can instead have you cook... Luckiily I was always the cook anyway but I do clean now as well.

 

[Craig]

I agree, the old hourly rate deal is pretty bogus ... unless, as noted above, you are truly forgoing paid work.

To the point of the article, I think time today is a very precious commodity for many of us, considering the current work pace. It has definitely changed over the last decade ... 12 hour days are much more common, and even when I'm not in the office or on the road for work, I'm checking emails and voice mails from home, on the PocketPC, etc.

Put all that together, and it is tough to have quality family time. If two spouses are working, it gets really challenging in many cases.

 

[audreyh1]

I think those working people in the article just don't get that it usually COSTS money to SAVE time.

But if you're a working person putting in a lot of hours, it makes sense to me to pay for prepared food when it means you can enjoy an extra hour or so in the evening after a long day instead of doing chores.

That's one of the wonderful things about retirement. You have the time, so things often cost less because you don't need to be in a hurry, you can "afford" the time to do chores, and you still have plenty of time left over for the really important stuff.

Audrey

 

[FinanceDude]

They make comparisons between, say, two hours cooking and eating at home, and two hours driving to and fro and eating at a restaurant.

If it takes 2 hours to cook a basic meal, you need a different cookbook, or your cooking skills are suspect..............

 

[Nords]

If it takes 2 hours to cook a basic meal, you need a different cookbook, or your cooking skills are suspect..............

Spaghetti sauce from scratch can simmer for at least an hour.

 

[kcowan]

Let's see now, he's making his hourly rate while eating dinner...

Sounds like a lawyer I once knew

 

[scrinch]

Spaghetti sauce from scratch can simmer for at least an hour.

So while you're watching that sauce simmer, how much is that bottle of Two-Buck-Chuck really costing you?