Time is not money, but it can be equally important. It is a finite resource that we all have and we regularly trade our time for other things, like money and enjoyment.

I didn’t start having time until I started making more money. Going to the laundromat takes half the day if you don’t want your shit stolen or your machine taken mid load and you find your dirty wet clothes dumped out on the floor. Having a washer and dryer in your home makes laundry a nearly passive chore. I have that as well as a dishwasher. When I finally got a job that pays well, I relocated for it and got an apartment that has those, plus a trash chute just a couple doors down. Once we were unpacked and settled in, I bought a roomba too.

I work 12 hour shifts, so it’s amazing to come home and not have all that bullshit to worry about. And the older I get, the more aware I am that I’m running out of time. Spending my finite time on shit I enjoy is the real secret to happiness.

Time might not totally be money, but they’re definitely in a balance. I’m currently working 40 hours a week, but considering working less. That’d also lower my wage though, obviously. Beyond that I also notice that I tend to be much more likely to spend more money to safe time (i.e. paying the bicycle shop to fix my bike tire instead of fixing it myself). More and more I’m noticing that up to some limit time is money and money is time. And so I’m going to have to put a value on my (free) time.

The older I get the more I’ve started to structure my ideal of being comfortable as meaning “my time is more valuable than my money.” Whereas I used to change my own oil or absolutely refuse to pay a delivery fee on take out, now I recognize that it’s more important to me to save that time than that money. Especially when it comes to things I could do, but a professional could do in a matter of hours to my days/weeks of work (I’m looking at you drywall finishing).