Your time is not free

[tungularafishcamp]

That's what I would probably be doing "Sitting watching TV" had I not been outside working on some project.

And I'd much rather be out working on making my backhoe or making something else other than sitting in the house all day.

I don't value everything in money. I just got back from helping a friend haul some wood to her house. I spent 2 hours of my time gathering it and loading it in my truck, driving to her house and then unloading it for her.

I didn't charge her a dime for any of it. Including gas for my truck.

Chad

Chad your missing out on Big Bucks, I have 2 little ole ladies that live next door to our town house that I am always doing stuff for and I make them pay thru the nose...and the mouth with the best oatmill/craison cookies I ever had
Rick

 

[jgrreed]

Well I hoped a nice, concise post like that would help me understand, but no I guess I still don't get it.

Maybe it's really a "feel" thing that differs for each person. OP wants to use a firm 90 bux an hour to determine whether he will do something, whereas I just go, "Do I want to do it?" If so, I just do it. If not, I start comparing the cost of hiring a pro to how bad I don't want to do it."

No, I think you do get it. That's how I understand it as well. Some may use 90$, some 20$, some 500$ - it all depends what you do for your 'real job'. I'd throw in there as well that I consider how much of a mess I might make of said project before it's 'right' (and the costs and time associated with a re-do).

-Jer.

 

[chad22]

Chad your missing out on Big Bucks, I have 2 little ole ladies that live next door to our town house that I am always doing stuff for and I make them pay thru the nose...and the mouth with the best oatmill/craison cookies I ever had
Rick

lol. :laughing: I'll have to come over and get me some of those cookies. :licking: They sound great.

When I get there and see those cookies. I just might turn into cookie monster. Or should I show up in a cookie monster costume? :laughing:

Chad

 

[tungularafishcamp]

They don't care either way, when I get back to town I am pretty bushy both literally and figureitivly and smelling of fish. They hardly let me get in the door to my house before they want me coming over for coffee n cookies, life is rough sometimes but I will work for cookies any day:licking:
Rick

 

[Bison]

Jeez,you guys still yapping about time free or not/?
seems to me that time is being yapped away :laughing:

 

[Eyeshade]

I'm brand new to TBN ( my first post) but I think O2batsea is correct. I value my time at $90 per hour too; that is why I haven't slept in years. I figured it was costing me $90 x 8 hours or $720 a night to sleep. I found a guy down the street who will sleep for $200 a night so I farmed it out.

 

[Iplayfarmer]

I'm brand new to TBN ( my first post) but I think O2batsea is correct. I value my time at $90 per hour too; that is why I haven't slept in years. I figured it was costing me $90 x 8 hours or $720 a night to sleep. I found a guy down the street who will sleep for $200 a night so I farmed it out.

:laughing:

Great post. Point taken.

 

[doall]

It's all good guys. As slow as I type that'll be $10 somebody.:thumbsup:

But I see what he is talking about. It's simply what I have stated twice before If you only put $200 in a homemade bulldozer; you really have way more than that in it if you count your time. Not saying that it was a waste of time or a bad investment of time or money; only that you really have more in it. If you buy a $100,000 bulldozer all the money doesn't go for steel and components; they have labor in it=time.

 

[SensibleNick]

You build it to DO STUFF with, complexity of the implement is immaterial. The moment it goes into service it becomes an asset. If it is an asset that you took time to build it has intrinsic value part of which is your labor and expertise. My premise is that you must include the time you took to build it into account when placing a value on this asset.

....a boat I outfitted and rigged myself,

That's a Nice asset you have there then. Your time spent on it and using it (by your definition) must have a cost.

The area in which things fall down in this entire debate, is the definition of what people do: Is it simply for Fun, or is it a Necessary task? Further complication arises because some of us get great pleasure from doing necessary tasks.

My Granddad once said "Find a job you love, and you'll never work a day in your life" Now.. my company charges upwards of $250 and hour for what I do... but I don't get paid anything like that.... When my friends ask for help I give them help for free. I enjoy helping people: it makes me happy to see them happy.

I think you spend too much time making false assumptions about me.

Your OP did exactly that about a lot of people here. Don't get grumpy when they return the favour.

I make stuff for fun... Even if I need to make it or not, I usually enjoy it. Sometimes however I'd rather pay $100 to get a part on a car changed instead of doing the job myself ... I'd rather have the time to make stuff.

Overall I' think it's rather tragic to assign a cost to your free time. It must make it rather hard to enjoy life.

 

[Renze]

This is our theoretical parting of the ways, my friend.

so, bye bye then.