FRÎ - 1/21 - Hów do you balance time and money?·

[MN-Investor]

There's a thread about simplifying your life. People talk about baking their own bread, growing their own food. Another thread discusses making your own laundry soap.

I commented in one thread that I would gladly pay others to bake my bread and grow my organic veggies. For that I was - tongue in cheek - chided as not being a smart spender.

I contend that people tend to undervalue their non-work time and end up spending it foolishly. I feel that both time and money have to be taken into consideration when you are looking at your budget. Moreover, it's silly to spend your time doing chores you don't want to do - like mowing your lawn or baking your own bread or changing your own oil - if your budget allows you to pay others to do those chores. In addition, it makes more sense to spend your time making more money, for example researching stock, than to save $1 by making your own bread.

So, what about it? How do you balance your time and money? Do you consider the value of your time in relation to the amount of money saved? Has this changed over time as your savings and earnings have increased? Do you feel guilty paying others to do something you are quite capable of doing yourself?

[Deleted]

MN if you put the date in the title you could have our question of the day. You'll see the format on some of the others.

ETA - It's way past my bedtime. I'll chat on this tomorrow.

[❤ mollymouser ❤]

I think we all make spending choices and budgeting priorities that reflect our lifestyles and our values ~ and we're all quite different.

We pay a gardener to mow/edge/rake leaves because I'm allergic to grass and my wonderful DH's work + deployment schedule wouldn't allow him to do it. But I like trimming bushes and tending flowers ~ so I do that part of the yard work and then happily leave piles of shrubbery for the gardener to pick up. I also (weirdly) like raking leaves ... so I spend a lot of time doing that .... which I'm sure the gardener appreciates.

Baking isn't my "thing" ~ so I don't do it. I happily buy my sprouted, organic, low carb flax seed bread for me, and the Milton's multigrain bread for my wonderful DH. It's not a budget buster for us, and even though I have time to bake bread, I have no wish or desire to bake bread. But some people really love baking, I think.

I try to keep our energy costs low, plus I like conserving energy, so I hand-wash dishes and often hang (some) laundry to dry. I have the time and the desire to do these things ~ the happy coincidence is that it saves us money. But this may not be desirable or practical for many people.

Sometimes, instead of driving my car and using gas, I choose to ride my bike to accomplish errands. This can take a lot of time ~ I went to two different stores today and biked 17 miles in the process. But this is also my main form of exercise, and I'm working hard on getting healthier ~ so I was willing to make the investment in time and effort. The fact that it saved some gas money and helped the environment was just a bonus.

Even though my wonderful DH can (and does) do some around-the-house projects, sometimes we choose to "staff them out" and hire someone with greater skills, training and expertise to do the project. This really removes a lot of stress from my wonderful DH ... and gives him more free time to enjoy leisure activties when he's not working. Because we plan for, save, and budget for these things ~ we are able to do this more often than others may choose to. That doesn't mean our way is better ... or their way is better ... it's just different.

When it comes to Smart Spending and Frugal Living, there's no One-Size-Fits-All answer.

[wackyaunt]

Molly, I sooooo agree. I cook because I enjoy it and because of severe food allergies in the family. (hmmmm, maybe if I didn't have fun cooking, we wouldn't be on a diet!) Things that I don't enjoy I may or may not do myself; things I cannot stand doing I am a firm believer in budgeting for the project and supporting my local economy. I also agree with MN Investor that on some other boards the peeps get snarley if you don't buy into their frugal lifestyle program 100%. It may make me a frugal misfit, but a happy one!

[patchwork150]

I am more than capable of learning/doing simple fixes to my car. I know how to switch out my alternator, battery, do an oil change, etc. I can learn to do more complicated things. I am not WILLING to take the time and energy to do it. I prefer to pay my wonderful mechanic to do it for me, and faster and better too. : ) Besides, I am stimulating the economy and providing my mechanic with a paycheck! lol

[constanz22]

I enjoy baking my own bread (in the bread machine~totally "from scratch" is WAY too much work!) but, for me, I think I'm actually WASTING money. It's just me, so, fresh baked bread goes bad before I can even begin to eat a loaf, so, I end up throwing a lot out. I do LOVE fresh baked bread though!
I do not know how to change my oil, nor do I really care to learn how. I can get an oil change for $20 around here and even my mechanically inclined male friends say it's cheaper and not worth the hassle of doing it yourself for that price.
I pay for lawn care in the summer. I'm single, work full time, varied hours. I HATE yard work, so, gladly pay $45 a pop to have my almost half acre mowed. Even when I was really struggling financially, that was not something I was willing to do. I actually got rid of cable rather than have to mow the lawn!

[Deleted]

My talents have never been in the money making category. I am good at my job and I get promoted regularly, but leave it to me to pick a low paying sector to practise in. I make pretty good money, not great money. Being frugal and learning to do some things for myself means I can use the money that would have gone to that for something else. For example, the cost of changing my rear signal light could become a pedicure. (actually it was added to savings but it coulda been a pedicure! ) Trying to study up on the stock market makes my eyes glaze over. It is actually more fun to change the signal light.

And one of those savings might not be much, but they really do add up.

[readsalot]

I seem to have quite a bit of time to myself because of the things I Don't do, which also saves me money. I don't shop just to shop. I ONLY shop when I need something and even then I don't run around shopping all day. I don't get manicures, I do my own pedicures. I get my hair trimmed every 3 months, etc. So when I'm home I can read & drink the coffee I made in my own coffee machine. The books are borrowed from the library, or my Mom, and the coffee is bought on-sale &/or with a coupon. So I get to do my favorite thing

[telephus44]

I do value my time more than most of the diehard frugal people I know. I don't make my own bread or laundry detergent. I won't invest hours of my free time in frugal activities unless I also enjoy it - like other posters, who may like baking bread or whatever - go for it! I like using coupons, so even though it takes a fair amount of time, I do it because it's fun for me.

I figure I spend enough time working to provide enough money to meet my needs, I don't need to spend the rest of my free time working to save money. My needs are already met through my paycheck, I don't need to spend hours stretching it.

[pepperdoo]

MN Investor: I think it just depends on the individual. I could never chide you for not doing the same things I enjoy doing. One of my co-workers won't bake bread, however, she loves it when I bring her some to take home. I, on the other hand can't even text on my phone an she fixes it when I mess it up, so it works out great for the both of us. In addition, the other girls in the office eat out, while I eat at home.

My husband died in a car accident in May 2010, and he was Old School. He loved being waited on, but he in turn bent over backwards for me and we jumped through hoops for each other.
The baking bread for me is not just about saving a buck here and there, I enjoy cooking and baking, and I love being home on my days off.

[pepperdoo]

MN Investor: P.S. Since Paul's not here any more, and he took care of the investing/ retirements accounts and stuff like that, I am learning how to do everything that he did on my own.

Hats off to you for knowing about investing and such, because it's all new to me.

[Tiny]

I always took "simplifying your life" to mean remove the "clutter" from your life. Or basically, determining what things you valued most and then working on doing those things.

I don't think making my own bread would simplify my life in way shape or form. Not making my bed every morning adds a few extra minutes of sleep everyday and that DOES add value to my life.
I stopped buying high maintenance appliances/gadgets - you know things that constantly need batteries. I don't need an "electric broom" a battery operated "room freshener" or a battery operated flashlight or any other "convience" product that's gonna become an inconveneice when it stops working.
I stopped buying clothing that was High Maintenance - required drycleaning after wearing (or those special dryer sheets).
I stopped buying some types of "one use" only kinds of products I don't need separate products to clean windows, to clean appliances, to clean countertops, to clean the bathroom mirror. One should do it all.

I think I mistook the "simplify life" movement to mean budgeting your time so you could spend more time on the things you enjoy. Budgeting time (like money) means having to choose which things you will do and which you won't. How many "non value adding" things do you do each day? Can you eliminate them? That's what simplifying means to me.

[texaspn]

We seem to have a lot of time since we are retired. Still, my husband is disabled so we hire the lawn mowing and large tree trimming-we do the other yard stuff ourselves. We also have the car work done by a good mechanic. Other than that, I like keeping house, cooking and consider saving money a hobby as well as a necessity. We also use our free time to do work we enjoy-volunteering for our church and I continue to work in my profession although it is on a volunteer basis. Being organized frees up a lot of time.

[tiredboomer]

When we began the seriously frugal life, it was because we had to. We couldn't afford to pay anyone else to do things. Now our income has increased substantially, but we still tend to do most things ourselves although not all. Some we truly enjoy, but some not so much. However, I think doing them gives us a sense of satisfaction and accomplishment as we watch the savings pile up. I teach, and I try to impart that philosophy to my kids.

[motherto2]

I believe a lot of decisions are based on individual circumstances. If there isn't much income coming into the house, I believe you have more pressure to find ways to do things more frugally than you would if the income was higher. I also think that as the income is higher, you have more options to pick and choose who or how things like chores and maintenance are taken care of. I love fresh baked bread, I have a bread machine, but for the life of me can't make a loaf of bread that is all that good. Not sure what I'm doing wrong, but this is why I don't bake often. I do try from time to time, hoping I will get the right recipe one day

I enjoy doing DIY things in and out of the house. Plus I like a good challenge, and I like to figure out how inexpensively I can do a project. I've tackled large projects like installing sidewalks, fixing drainage issues, creating a pond in the front yard and a smaller one in the backyard, and my latest, staining my very large patio. I do enjoy yard work, and have installed large flower beds around the house, and do all my own raking, mowing, painting (inside and out), etc. Could I hire someone to do the work? Yes, but it's my hobby, and I have a great sense of ownership by doing all the work myself. But I do know when it's prudent to hire a professional. I will tackle some smaller plumbing and electric work, but I will hire a professional for safety reasons even though I could probably do it myself.

[kadee]

However, I think doing them gives us a sense of satisfaction and accomplishment as we watch the savings pile up.

I think that says it all! We are retired and both enjoy staying active....that includes mowing/yard work, gardening, auto maintenance, building things (our house), etc.
We should live longer since we stay active & keep our minds occupied! And I still dabble in the market...just not big time!

[formerexpat]

Part of us deciding to live in a town home community was having not to worry about maintenance of the lawn. It's included in the fees. Even though our yard is not large, I would prefer not to spend my time off doing those things right now in my life.

There are a lot of things that I could do myself but an oil change can be done for $20 and oil & filter alone will run approx $10-15, so I'll gladly pay someone the $5-10 to do it.

I CAN replace the water pump and timing belt but I'd rather pay a professional who does it regularly than spend several hours myself once every several years when my cars need it.

My focus now is my career and family. I get paid very well for what I do and enjoy spending my free time with my family...or F'ing around on here with you guys. I figure I'll focus on those things rather than some things that save a bit of money to do myself.

[bobbysgirl]

always took "simplifying your life" to mean remove the "clutter" from your life. Or basically, determining what things you valued most and then working on doing those things.



ATRS is right on here. Some of us have found it to be easier to save in smaller increments and watch our money grow. We also have discovered what we like to do and what we don't like to do. The thing is no one can know the difference if we don't try. My investments are conservative. I have no desire to do what you do, but the end result is we are both relatively secure and very comfortable. Isn't that the goal?

It's so difficult to read a post as being positive in the first place. My take on your response was that of an attack mode. Perhaps your delivery could be a bit smoother next time, OP. Once I get to know you, I can read between the lines. Your views are always appreciated and I, for one, always try to come away with information I can apply to my life in a positive manner.

[Artemis Windsong]

Pepperdoo: There are free investment courses online that MSN offers but I don't know where to find them. I went through TDA's a few years ago but still have a CFP.

Our issue is too many hobbies that cost money. We have plenty of time.

My one gripe is each group I belong to doesn't realize that I need to stagger going to their lunch, their fund raiser, their whatever. We don't have 4 retirement checks coming in. This is a revent.

[998fbird]

I don't mind paying what I think is a fair price to have someone do what I dislike doing. I don't enjoy yard work or house work, but I will mow the lawn and clean house to save money. I don't bake my own bread or make my own laundry detergent, but I do shop for the best price on items I use and cook for myself and I am a brown bag queen. I don't like to shop, but staying out of stores is another way I find to save money. My biggest splurges are time savers when I travel. My personal rules about travel is if the destination is more than 2 hours away by car and I can fly vs. drive, I fly.
My time is worth money and I have learned over the years when it is worth it to me to spend money or spend time.

[pepperdoo]

Artemis: I'm going to get over th tax hurdle before I do anything else. After that, I'll see where I kind of stand. I still have to sell the motorcycle too. I'd keep it, but it's too big for me.

Again, as far as balancing my time and money, when you lose someone like I did and it's taken almost 8 months to get a decent night's sleep.

[Agatha]

Time vs money or is that money vs time? Sometimes it depends on what you have the most of or what you do better.

At my last house I hired a man to mow my yard, front and back for what I felt was a very reasonable price. Discretionary income was high and I hadn't kept the lawn tools my late husband used. Didn't want to pay for moving them either. I guess I could have bought a lawn mower at a garage sale or on Craigslist, done my own mowing, and saved money. But I hate mowing and after working 4 12 hr days I was physically wiped out. It meant far more to me to hire a very nice man who did a very good job for a very decent price.

I moved into my home almost three years ago and my younger nephew moved with me. I bought a lawn mower and he mows the yard. Between both of my nephews my yard and garden are whipping into shape. They enjoy it. When they leave, and I know they will, I will have to find someone to take over. I will not start doing by myself. I would rather be reading, baking goodies for my guys or my friends, writing in my poetry journal, working on the book I'm writing, or finally finishing up some of my bead-work.

Does anyone remember reading "Cheaper by the Dozen"? The Gilbreath family where both father and mother were time/motion experts. There's a section in the book where a journalist asks Mr. Gilbreath why he was so obsessed with efficiency and saving time. Why save time? I don't recall off the top of my head the exact quote but Mr. Gilbreath replied that saving time on some things gave you the time to do the things more important to you. . ."mumbly-peg, if you have a mind to!" Isn't that one of the reasons we are here? We want to save money so we have money to do the things we want to do or the things which give us joy.