Today’s cafe & cake is dedicated to this interesting dilemma. Time vs money is something that consciously or unconsciously affects us in our daily lives, specially in the competitive and over connected world we live in.
In order to properly explain my thoughts related to time and money, I decided to make a short summary of how, during some stages of my career, my thoughts regarding time and money have changed. After all, our job is where we really need to put the limits. It provides us a paycheck and it tends to consume a high percentage of our time. Besides, professionally speaking, we’re sometimes in situations where we are tempted with more bills in exchange for more of our time, and everything can become unbalanced if we don’t control our greed. Let’s get into it.
How perception about time and money changes over time
Stage 1 - Money first
By 2007 I had my first job. I was lucky to start working as a consultant in a factory in my hometown. By then, no mortgage, no kids. Just my girlfriend and me. During those six years I was able to hang out with friends, go to the gym, and life after 9 PM out of home existed. No concerns about time as you can imagine during this stage.
Regarding money, I confess that my lack of experience sometimes took me to compare my salary to some of my workmates and my goals were basically getting promoted or maybe being hired by a bigger and well known company for earning more and more.
That job ended, and after trying with no success my own company, I started working for others again as a consultant. More or less my perception was the same regarding time vs money, until one day, when the player 3 joined the family. Here comes a great moment in life that completely changes the rules. By then, I was the only one working at home for some circumstances, and we had enough expenses for not saving a lot every month. So, in that moment, the situation was that we had a small human being at home consuming our time 24/7, and more than ever we needed more money, and after some time, I had the chance of jumping to a new job that provided some extra income. I was happy for that change because the project seemed very interesting, besides we had to move to another city. And without me knowing, I was about to enter the next stage.
Stage 2 - The trap
This stage covers a few projects in which I finally understood that (in my humble opinion), if you chase money, no matter what, you will loose all of your time, and probably your soul. I entered the world of very veteran familiar companies / multinationals, where the different areas of the company play a real life game of thrones in which you can either become a mercenary or be executed (not literally of course). Of course, inf you enjoy acting as a mercenary, these companies are for you, but it was not my case.
There were moments in which I felt constantly stressed, feeling I was never doing enough, working more hours than I should, and realizing I needed to change who I was for my managers to be happy with me. But I didn’t want to. In that moment, I didn’t want more money. I wanted a healthy place where I could learn, work in something interesting and hopefully having a fair salary, but at some moments it seemed impossible. And more important, I noticed that I had sold more of my time for a better salary, and it was not worth. By the way, player 4 was on the way, and fortunately, entering the next stage.
Stage 3 - The revelation
In the summer when player 4 was in process, during my holidays, I spent some time under a pine reading among other things, the Chainsaw Man manga. I remember meditating about what I was going to do with my career because I didn’t feel comfortable at all. Sunday evenings were stressing because the tedious cycle of meetings 9 to 6 was about to start for five consecutive days. There were many signs telling me I needed a change. And I decided I was going to find another job. But this time, convinced that there should be out there a place that where I could learn, grow and have fun.
After some months of interviews, I had the chance to be included in a selection process for my current company. Honestly, I forgot about the money (but I had clear expectations). I had clear in my mind that, I wanted to be in a place where I could work the way I wanted, with a healthy environment. The process was very smooth, and I had a great time in those interviews, which was a very good sign. I fitted in that place and I got the job. No other job change felt nearly as good as that one, and for that, I was convinced I was in the right way.
Companies change a lot over time. People come and go, and IT jobs are now in a very effervescent moment. Maybe in the future I need to update this post, but I feel quite lucky to work as a Product Manager in a project I really believe, and in a company that believes in what I can provide (and you’re not an outsourced resource that you can easily replace). Besides, I don’t have a fixed schedule, and I can work almost when I want. I have to say, this is along with the good environment, the best you can have with kids at home. However, even in this situation, balancing family and job is still hard.
Perception about time vs money? As you get older and you have a family (and you want to sped time with it), time becomes the most important asset.
I won’t lie, we all want to improve our conditions (not just salary), but for me, it has to be without sacrificing freedom. If you are just after money, you’ll probably end up answering emails in your phone while you are in vacation and some friend or relative is preparing a burger in a barbeque, because that is how your manager will verify that you are a committed employee (feel the irony?).
Who wins the battle then?
Unfortunately there is not a clear answer that fits everyone. This is a personal opinion and it should be considered that way. After everything mentioned so far, I think what changes everything is willing to work for living or just the opposite. Having a family is a decisive factor too.
In a first scenario, there are no intentions of having personal projects, family or whatever. For reasons I will try to analyze, this is getting more frequent in the last years, and let’s not judge anyone, it is a very respectable choice. It is very probable that in this scenario, you are able to travel when necessary and start great projects in huge companies. There are many options out there, and I have been tempted to do it but, in my case, I have always chosen to be at home and minimize travel.
This is why, if your choice is living just for your job, that is fine, and you can keep on pleasing your managers until you become a C-level and you have a bank account many people would love to have. Or you can do this until you can save enough for retirement and then start to live your life. But you never know long this will take. Under these circumstances, the winner is money, of course.
Now, second scenario: you want to have a family for instance. Until this moment, do whatever you want, and spend more or less time with your friends, partner or yourself, but consider that having a family requires dedication, and this means time. You don’t add two children to the shopping cart, and they arrive home in 24h. So, as said before, worrying before about having decent conditions and a good CV is a good idea, but from the moment you have kids, they grow from Monday to Sunday. This is the moment when you need to put time before the money you should have cared about until that moment if you wish to have some savings.
Long story short: Prioritizing time over money provides you a healthier future, and it provides you with the necessary space for doing things right, and that brings money at some moment.
Final thoughts
Let´s put some tips in a small list to summarize what I honestly think about the time vs money battle:
- Extremes are never good. Don’t get obsessed with money. It will make you unhappy wherever you work.
- Don’t become a workaholic, please. This is a never ending spiral that takes you to a place with no life. And companies in general won’t thank you for that.
- Avoid when possible comparing to others in terms of salary. If you want, get inspired with people who have time. They earn a lot for sure.
- If you plan to have a family, or you appreciate your space, prioritize time. It’s useless to have money when you don’t have anyone to spend it with. And it is absurd when you loose your health for earning money you’ll spend when you get older to recover your health again (hopefully).
- Children are not that expensive. People often give second hand clothes and gadgets for your babies, and you won’t loose your savings buying diapers.
- Making money is a bit harder, but making time is something you can learn. I have recently read a book about this, that I highly recommend: Make time from Jake Knapp and John Zeratsky. Really practical if you have certain autonomy for arranging your daily tasks.
I know you have thought about this topic at some moment. If not, you wouldn’t have read this post. You are invited to provide any comments in the form below.
Cheers!