Time Is Not Money – Time Is Money Debunked

I have been getting really tired of hearing people say the phrase “Time is Money” to me recently. Though I can understand the merit of the phrase when spoken during business hours, since rent, hourly wages, and other time based payments are factored in, each time I hear it outside of work, I just want to shout to the speaker at the top of my lungs “No it’s not, stop spreading stupidity!”

When I was a toddler, I used to play with a very simple puzzle, the goal of the puzzle was to fit various shapes into similar shaped holes, the triangular shape into the triangular shaped hole, the pentagon into the pentagon hole, square into the square hole, however the circular piece on my version of this puzzle, was a little bit special, since all the pieces were designed with the exact same width, the circular piece would not only fit into the circular shaped hole, but also into the square shaped hole. However even in my toddler years I was already smart enough to realize that this did not make a circle equal to a square, because the square would not fit through the circular hole. The phrase “circle is square” makes about as much sense to me as “time is money”.

Shape Puzzle

Although money is something you can rent people’s time with, and with more money you can indeed rent more people’s time, one thing that you can never do with money, is buy more time for yourself, and neither can anyone else. Time is limited, and the only real thing that any of us have here on earth, it is the most valuable thing we ever possess, and most everyone would give up any amount of money to have more. Although you’re always free to sell your own time as much as you wish, you can never buy it back.

In a social situation, two people are sharing their time with each other, nobody is paying one another, and therefore the value of both people’s time is completely equal, in fact you could use the phrase “time is time” or “time = time” and nobody could ever bring a valid argument against it.

Sometimes I feel that a good part of society has things a little bit mixed up about money and time, that some of the rich people, and also some of the poor, feel that the value of a wealthy people’s time is greater,  but again, in a social situation, where money is not involved, time has no monetary value, and we all make the same wage of absolutely nothing.

Obviously time is not money.

16 Responses to Time Is Not Money – Time Is Money Debunked

  1. I quite like equating time to money when it comes to unpleasant DIY jobs. By factoring in what my time is worth to my employer per hour, the decision to hire a man to the jobs becomes a no-brainer.

  2. @mulledvine
    Yes sometimes those unpleasant jobs are best given to others, in that case your time is greater than money.

  3. Unfortunately for some, money factors into everything. I wonder how happy those people are? I guess in some ways, I do think everything has an opportunity cost (doing this vs. doing that), but that cost isn’t necessarily monetary.

  4. @Janene
    I am not really sure how happy they are also Janene, I was at a party full of large business owners last week, some of them own companies making over a million dollars a day, who I ended up standing with and talking to. The question came up whether I liked my time off or not, to which I replied, even though I take very little time off it is the best part of my life. I found I was the only one in the circle with such an opinion, and realized even though I was just there enjoying the party, all these people were actually working, and networking. Although they may be happy working, I feel sorry for them that they don’t know how to be happy relaxing. I don’t remember any laughter during the evening.

  5. ‘Time is money’ simply implies to the professionals. Need a plumber then watch your back as time is money. When it comes to everyday life, time is but for a moment and we better not waste it. We cannot recall time, halt time or delay it. All we can do is live for the moment.
    Have i gone off track? Probably, but time waits for no man, neither do I.

  6. @Rum Punch Drunk
    Yes time is defiantly money when you hire someone else to do your dirty work, I would agree with you in that instance, because that means that your time was more important than money, as is mine so long as I am not broke.

  7. Scott, I’ve always been very jealous of my time. That’s why I’ve worked so little in my life. Money can buy you things, but not freedom. Freedom comes from realizing you don’t need most of the things money can buy.

  8. @nothingprofound
    I am very similar to you NP, I hoard as much time as I can for my own desires, and try to sell as little of my time as possible.

  9. Time flies like an arrow.
    Fruit flies like a banana.

    “Time is an illusion, lunchtime doubly so”
    – Douglas Adams

  10. @dalecooper57
    “Fruit flies like a banana.” is one of the funniest phrases I have read in a long time, thanks for the visit.

  11. Quite true! Time is money is way too stressful for a simple life.

  12. @Charlene
    A simple life I think is the best anyone could hope for, thanks Charlene.

  13. I agree with you, Scott, time is definitely not money. I’m with NP, I’m selfish with my time. I’m cash poor, but freedom rich.

  14. @Helena Fortissima
    Gotta feel sorry for those freedom poor people. 😉

  15. Scott, that is an apt analogy. Time cannot be captured in phrases and syllables. To me, time is like the sand on the beach -plentiful but something that never stays in my fist.

  16. @umashankar
    If only we could hold onto that sand forever.

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