Negative Consequences of Thinking Time = Money

Source: Intellectual/Pixabay

Benjamin Franklin famously said, "Time is money." Is that a good way to think about time? Perhaps not always. In a recent review published in the April issue of Current Opinion in Psychology, Sanford DeVoe of UCLA suggests that thinking of time as money can have a number of negative consequences.¹

Of course, there is wisdom in the Franklin quote. The quote comes from a 1748 essay entitled “Advice to a young tradesman,” which begins with “Remember that time is money.” Franklin then says the person who could have earned 10 shillings per day, but goes on a trip or “sits idle one half of that day,” should bear in mind that even if he spends little money during his “diversion or idleness,” what this time off has really cost him is half his salary.

Like Franklin, many of us believe that time is valuable. However, we do not always determine time’s value in relation to how much money we could earn. For one, this calculation is difficult except for people who get paid by the hour. Second, time’s value does not depend only on its potential use for making a lot of money.

For instance, we can consider time and money as both valuable, each in their own way. So while many advertising slogans use money as an indicator of value (e.g., “Perfection has its price.”), many others mention time as an indicator of value (e.g., “A diamond is forever.”). An analysis of 300 ads in four different magazines (Rolling Stone, Money, Cosmopolitan, and New Yorker) found that references to money and/or time were incorporated in almost half of these magazines.²

Research on the link between time and money

In his own previous studies, DeVoe, the author of the paper reviewed here, had observed that compared to non-hourly workers, those receiving hourly pay were more eager to trade their time for money. A study of those with prior experience (within two years) of receiving hourly pay showed similar results. The results held even after researchers controlled for characteristics related to the individual/family (age, education, household size, marital status, number of children) and the job itself (job satisfaction, income, hours worked, tenure).³

In another study, merely asking those who had little or no experience with hourly work to calculate their hourly pay resulted in their greater willingness to give up their free time to earn additional money.⁴

Source: mohamed_hassan/Pixabay

Thinking of time as money: Volunteering and socializing

One implication of the reviewed research is this: Thinking that time is money increases the likelihood that people will trade their time to earn more money—time that could be spent volunteering or socializing with family and friends.

Let us consider socialization first.

Previous research shows that hourly workers (especially high-income workers) socialize less with family and friends, but more with coworkers. Spending greater time with coworkers may be related to its “professional usefulness” and “potential future economic return,” but it has not been linked to happiness; previous research shows that happiness is instead associated with greater socializing with friends and family.

Let us consider how this time-money equivalency affects another potential use of one’s free time: volunteering.

Volunteering is associated with many positive outcomes related to psychological well-being, such as the feeling that one belongs and the sense of one’s life having a purpose.^5,6

Previous research suggests that compared to non-hourly workers, people who get paid by the hour are less likely to volunteer their time. And when they do volunteer, they volunteer less time.¹

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Concluding thoughts on valuing time

While it is useful to think of time as money (as a way to value our time), valuing time only in reference to money can have negative consequences and decrease our happiness—via its negative effects on time we dedicate to volunteering or socializing with friends and family. And looking at Benjamin Franklin’s life, it appears he valued time not only in terms of money but in many other ways (e.g., to satisfy his curiosities). So let us remember to value our time more, to value it in terms of money, but also in ways that can bring us additional happiness and well-being.