What's your personal time worth? | GTAMotorcycle.com

What's your personal time worth?

N

nobbie48

Well-known member
Site Supporter
Rhetorically speaking on the numbers.

Sometime I catch myself thinking of buying $10 worth of wood to make a shelf that I don't have space for to store something I'm unlikely to use in the foreseeable future. The project would involve several hours work for something I wouldn't pay $2 for at a garage sale. BUT IT COULD COME IN HANDY SOME DAY.

The two extremes are 1) You can make something in an hour that nets you $100 and there is high demand. If you could live without sleep you could make $2400 a day. On the other hand you could be retired and spend too much time on forums. Your time has no monetary value but could become a self funding hobby.
 
Depends on the currency. My day job pays more than enough for all of my needs, so everything else I do with my hands is basically a hobby. Hobbies pay in self-satisfaction rather than money, so there is some value in building that $2 shelf out of $10 of lumber if what I want is to feel good at the end of the day. The time spent building that shelf can itself be the reward - you've gotta fill your days somehow, and it's better to be out in the shop puttering around than doomscrolling on the phone.

I'm handy, but I don't think I'd do a job for a random person at this point in my life for any amount of money. That might change as I approach semi-retirement. But I'd do the same job for a friend for free. The stuff that binds us together as a society isn't money, so the currency being exchanged in the job for a friend could be called social collateral, which is worth way more than cash.
 
My friends make fun of me for getting excited about finding $50-$100 of scrap metal on the side of the road while my personal investments have left a lot on the table (not buying a rental property years ago for example) There is something addictive about finding free money/turning other peoples garbage into cold hard cash selling item on marketplace or whatever. I have almost made a living out of it.

In the end money left on the table isn't going to affect my life very much, with no kids planned or family to leave my inheritance to I'll have to pick some worthy charities later in life.

My old boss counted on $100 an hour. Waste time returning that item you bought at Staples to get $60 refunded? Nah he'd just throw it in the trash. Mindset shifts I guess when you are making $10,000-$20,000 parts and one gets scrapped halfway through the process. Why would you worry about 100 bucks when tomorrow you could lose 10k.
 
My personal time is priceless , I can’t imagine a dollar value for the time that is mine . I don’t need a hobby business ( now) because my real job is ok , but the hours I get to spend with friends and often building or fixing something for them? That’s time I couldn’t expect to get paid for or want to .


Sent from my iPhone using GTAMotorcycle.com
 
My personal time value is based on how much of my investments i have dipped into.
 
Tough question. I’ve been known to drive 3hrs return to pick up eggs from friends and pay more than at the store…because of a 3hr peaceful drive through the country.

My recent car top box experience netted me 2 boxes worth about $600-700 for a total of $300 once all time / gas / fixing is taking into account.

I’m always looking for a deal, but now if I save less than $50 on any item further away, I’ve decided it’s not worth the time for me…unless I want that very specific item!

Summer season is over, so the hunt restarts for some fun summer toys.
 
crankcall said:
My personal time is priceless , I can’t imagine a dollar value for the time that is mine .
Click to expand...

So much this ^.

Spent two hours the other day, detailing my bike in the driveway. Neighbour came by and joking said, "I'll pay you $200 if you clean my car the way you're cleaning your motorcycle"

He laughed. I laughed. But inside, I was thinking, "You could offer me $2,000 and I'd still say, 'nope'"

True luxury is owning your own time. You can always make $$$. You can never buy back the time you've lost.
 
Last edited:
Lightcycle said:
So much this ^.

Spent two hours the other day, detailing my bike in the driveway. Neighbour came by and joking said, "I'll pay you $200 if you clean my car the way you're cleaning your motorcycle"

He laughed. I laughed. But inside, I was thinking, "You could offer me $2,000 and I'd still say, 'nope'"

So many people think more dollars in the bank equals a life of luxury. True luxury is owning your own time. You can always make $$$. You can never buy back the time you've lost.
Click to expand...
I have three criteria for paid work now.

1) The job is interesting
2) I really like the person
3) The money is morbidly obese

1 and 2 go together and 3 is so far back it's out of the race.

I know a few people that are sad but don't know it. They want to be rich but they haven't defined "Rich".

If you don't know the destination you don't know how to get there or what it looks like when you arrive. You might just drive right by without noticing.

A person that wants $1,000,000 is firing a shotgun, hoping to hit something that will make them happy.

A person that wants $997,842.67 is using a sniper rifle with the scope trained on the target, adjusted to allow for all outside effects, purchase price, taxes, insurances, fees, delivery costs...

If you aren't happy with what you are you'll never be happy with what you have.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Back
Top Bottom