How Much Is Your Time Worth?

     “Time is money.” Have you ever heard this saying before? Even if you haven't, this short little statement is easy to understand. You go to work and punch in. You work and earn money until it is time to punch out. A record is kept of the time you spent at work. You bring home a paycheck based on this record of time spent working. Your time turns into money, so to speak.
     What if you get sick and have to take time off work? You start feeling the loss of those earnings and you go back to work when you are able, because time is money.
     Maybe you get caught in a traffic jam. You feel stress because your time – your valuable time – is being wasted. Also your gasoline is being wasted as you sit in traffic. And we all know that gas isn't cheap these days. It costs money, which is made through work – through the use of your time, because time is money.
     Ask yourself why you go to work. Okay, maybe you love your job. But do you think you enjoy it enough that you would still work there even if you didn't get a paycheck? Of course not; you live in the real world of bills and taxes, the world where time is money.
     Or is it? Is there a way you enjoy spending your time that earns you no money at all? Do you spend time with your family and friends? Do you have a hobby, play a sport, or care for a pet?
     Maybe you even have a favorite activity that costs you money. Do you ever visit a restaurant, go to the cinema, or take a shopping trip?
     If time is money, why do you happily spend your time doing something that either doesn't earn you a cent – or actually takes money from your bank account? Maybe because time is more than money – time is life. And life is not made only of work, bills, and taxes. There is plenty of time for joy in life.
     Time is also love. You spend time with people you love. You spend time doing things you love.
     Is time money? Yes - in the same sense that I can say I am a retail employee. My identity is not confined to my job – just as time is not only money; it is also love and life.
     So when you get caught up in the grind of nine to five, remember this: it's okay to stop and catch your breath once in a while. Lighten up. Don't become so busy chasing the American dream that you forget to live it.