Anytime I know I will have to wait for something such as an appointment, I try to have a book with me, or at least a notepad and paper to jot down ideas or to-do lists. I’m then able to turn wasted time into meaningful time.

I wish I could drop my vehicle off and pick it up later, but I would have to pay for a taxi, which would make the oil change cost twice as much. I’ll just make the best of my wait time with a good book, some phone calls, a crossword puzzle, etc.

This concept reminds me how I used to think I was “saving” money but cutting out X or Y from my expenses. However, I wasn’t putting that money towards a specific purpose. I was just saving money here and spending more here.

Great ideas though. Hiring help is something my wife and I have talked about. We just haven’t found a decent price, especially for lawn work.

I’m with twblues: I make the most of random down time by carrying a book or doing something. Sometimes, I just take a walk or enjoy having a moment to sit quietly and think. I don’t know that we can really judge all the people in Jiffy Lube waiting for an oil change; maybe some of them are just glad to have a moment to sit down and have nothing required of them.

Also, can we do something in terms of defining the leisure/wasted time? It concerns TV. Leisure time: sitting down to watch a specific TV show you enjoy. Wasted time: finishing that show and then aimlessly channel surfing for the next two hours just in case something good is on. I don’t mind those who don’t watch TV (and I spent years not watching it myself), but it is possible to have a balanced approach to TV viewing.

Awesome post. I actually JUST cancelled T.V. on Monday. I’m not saying it’s not good for anyone, but for me, I found myself just killing time looking for something good to watch. Did you see the American time use survey that the government just put out? There are some serious examples of wasted time in there. TV clocked in at 2 hours, 40 minutes per American per day.

The Jiffy Lube example struck a nerve with me as an apartment dweller. Y’all, we can’t even *wash* our cars on property. We have no choice but to take it somewhere else.

And then, as noted, we have the “choice” of waiting for a bus or taxi to take us somewhere else to do something else during the thirty minutes the car is getting dealt with? That’s not only a waste of time, it’s a waste of money.

Sitting there and reading quietly, on the other hand: leisure. That may be a very much needed break in someone’s over-scheduled day.

That said, Trent’s distinction between wasted time and leisure time is well made. I think a lot of ambitious people conflate the two, imagining that just because they get enjoyment or relaxation out of an activity rather than professional advancement or financial gain, that the time is wasted. And it isn’t.

My SO’s TV habit exasperates me but he insists that when he gets home from work, he needs to spend 4 hours a night in front of the TV to wind down and not think about work. I find that extremely difficult to believe, but then, he thinks I’m crazy for spending 2 hours a night reading. I think he’s wasting his life and he thinks it’s leisure. I pray for the TV to break so I can throw it away.

Interesting post. Though I’m not sure the distinction between activities is so black and white. Where is the line between leisure and wasted time when you watch a movie? For instance maybe you would say one, carefully selected classic/moving/whatever movie is not wasting time. But one per day might be. But even that you cannot say without considering everything else you do with your time. The value of everything influences the value of everything else. Is it wasted time or family time if you watch the movie with your child? What if your child is a baby, so they can’t appreciate the movie themselves, but do appreciate (as far as you know) sleeping in your arms while you watch?

Another aspect is that you could be paying money not to free up time, but to reduce stress. E.g. if you have enough money to afford it, and are frequently worried about finding time to clean your house, it might be worth hiring a house cleaner just to reduce stress. Even if all you do during that time is watch a movie while your baby sleeps in your arms.

What you consider ‘leisure’ versus ‘wasted’ time is a matter of personal opinion. If you like doing it then its not wasted. Some people DO like channel surfing even if you don’t.

Some wasted time can be avoided with better choices or planning. I avoid wasting time at the oil change place by only going when I drive by and see no line. I can’t change my oil faster then the guys do it. But not everyone has that option as their oil change place may be too busy. Some wasted time is forced on us by circumstances or choosing things we prefer or value more. People in rural areas choose to ‘waste’ time by driving longer distances to get anywhere… that is unless they actually enjoy driving a lot.

jim #9…or they don’t make the trip very often.

Thats just it Trent. Life’s balance. I’m seeking the balance but don’t have it yet. Too much computer/tv time at work and at home makes it hard to find focus and efficiency. Channel surfing or blog surfing…the value gained vs time spent is not equal in my life right now.

@ Tara C – I’m with you there. It didn’t bother me until I realized that he’d rather watch tv or play on the computer than spend time with me or the children. And now his clock is ticking…..

Excellent article! Many people fail to comprehend this when they glibly dismiss frugalities by saying, ‘Oh, my time is worth much more than that!’ Oh, really? Are you really going to work an hour extra each week – and make your regular hourly wage for that extra hour – by not clipping coupons? (Or whatever it might be.) It’s fine if the stress/hassle is not worth it to you; just please don’t pretend that your leisure time is more valuable than mine.

I don’t think there’s any need to quibble over what constitutes wasted time. I certainly know when I’m not using my time to its best advantage, and I suspect that most of us know this if we’re being honest with ourselves. I like the distinction between watching an enjoyed show and channel surfing. I don’t watch TV, but the same holds true for my computer. Reading a few carefully chosen blogs, vs. randomly poking around online when I should be doing something else is essentially the same type of analogy.

@ RJ Weiss

“I used to think I was “saving” money but cutting out X or Y from my expenses. However, I wasn’t putting that money towards a specific purpose. I was just saving money here and spending more here.”

I used to do the same thing! That is, until I read somewhere that you don’t really save any money unless you put the savings to work for you.

Now I make a game out of tracking my savings in various areas and assigning a specific job for each. I put all any “cash back” (such as bank rewards, rebates, etc.) into a specific savings account to help me buy a new computer. I also do a version of “keep the change” — rounding up each purchase to the nearest dollar and putting the difference into a kitty every few weeks to use for an inexpensive date with my husband.

I’m trying to get my husband in on the act by letting him choose what goal to put the next amount toward. I hope that if I keep doing this, he will adopt the habit himself.

Not only is leisure vs. wasted time different from person to person, but wasted time can in some cases be more valuable than leisure time. There are diminishing returns you can get from social, learning, and other “healthful” activities that can be outweighed by just vegging out for a few hours.

Hmmmmm. As someone who lived in Europe for years and was able to afford a housekeeper/cleaning person I expect I have a slightly different perspective. First, I never had to “manage”t his person after the first couple weeks she was in my home (admittedly I am not a type a so I figure as long as she cleans I am happy. If its not how I would clean, so be it). and secondly I never had a problem finding any thing to do. Was some of that time “aimless”? Absolutely. However I would not consider that time wasted. I suppose if youre someone who has problems fulfilling time constructiely, then it would be a waste. AS someone who reads, quilts, games, does crosswords, travels, plays golf and who knows what else, I never have time expanding activities to fill time. As for the person waiting at Jiffy lube? That would be me, getting a quarter of my book read completely uninterrupted.

It seems to me like you are the type of person who likes every moment and detail of their life to be planned and scheduled. I wouldn’t be able to enjoy life without being spontaneous or by having every second planned with scheduled leisure time activities. A recent example of this is about a week ago when I asked my girlfriend, “What should we do this weekend?” “I don’t know, we don’t have any plans.” “Want to go to Canada?” “Okay.” In 12 hours we were on the road, on our way to Canada. Those are the sorts of things that flavor my life. I spend a lot of time traveling (I’m in Kaua’i, Hawai’i right now, actually) and I never plan activities before arriving. I have an idea of what I’d like to see but don’t schedule anything since I like the flexibility to do as I chose, when I chose and not be tied to a prearranged itinerary.

So, long story short, I’m just curious how you handle such things as sponteneity.

Trent, if you hired an assistant, wouldn’t you spend more time doing your best and favorite work? I realize you know yourself best, of course.

I am glad to be able to hire out work that I hate (specifically, yard work). I don’t have to care whether I have a “constructive” activity to do instead.

I do change my own oil, but I understand where apartment dwellers don’t have the freedom to do that.

I strongly agree with the posters who say that hiring out can be worth it. If it’s a task that you really dislike and you can afford to pay someone else, then the improvement to quality of life can be well worth the money. It’s more about the YMOYL philosophy about getting the greatest personal value for the amount of money you’re spending. Maybe I’m spoiled but since I happen to be one of the “lucky” ones born in North America, leading a middle-class lifestyle, I might as well make the most of it. I’d like to spend my time doing things I am good at and/or enjoy, or at least not detest. If I can find ways to avoid the other stuff, then that seems fine. That doesn’t mean it’s all about me. I do like lots of down-time, but stuff I’m good at/enjoy can also be volunteering or community projects. If hiring someone to do my house cleaning or yard-work frees up my time for other useful personal pursuits, I thinks that’s a positive all around.

I guess it is all about using your time to its best advantage, or ‘to each his own.’ I don’t mind getting the oil changed at the dealership. The work gets done, its warranted, the car is washed and it might be the only 30 minutes that day I get to just sit and read a nice magazine. Besides, I would not extract any satisfaction from doing it myself. However, yard work is another story. My neighbor hires someone to do it and I’m content doing my own mowing, raking and pruning. It all goes back to where you place your value on time and money .

As I think Ben Franklin put it, time is indeed money.

Put simply, you need to eliminate wasted time and manage your professional time down to the minute.

Mastering these two arts, and they are arts, will give you an abundance of the most important—leisure time.

Can’t help comment about the jiffy lube thing too. I’ve changed oil in my cars before and now go out and get it done.

It actually think it takes longer to change your oil yourself. It takes time to go out to buy the oil + filter. Time to go dispose of the spent oil, Time to change it, and time to clean yourself up after rolling around under your car.

I guess if you’re super organized you can add those items to your shopping list, but for me, it was always a spur of the moment activity. The true reason I stopped doing it is access. I could reach the oil plug easily on my last car, but the new one is a pain in the butt to get at. It’s worth the $120/year to just have someone do it.

I never have problems filling my day though. Not wanting to part with money is my primary do-it yourself motivator.

I would just add that some people really want/need to have a scheduled life. That sounds like you trent, and that isnt a bad thing in any way. However, I work at home, and i have no schedule. I do what I want each day, and some days less gets done than other days. But I woujld be uncomfortale saying, well, now its this time, and now its this time………hence my different perspective

I do have a lot of wasted time, but I do get my oil changed at the “quick change” place so it takes less time than it would if I did it myself. Is it cheap, no, but it saves a ton of time and probably wouldn’t get done otherwise. Most of my wased time is time spent avoiding household or work activities.

Regarding the oil change: not only may it be difficult to change the oil itself, in my state it must be properly recycled. Not easy to do if you are an individual and have to hunt a disposal site.

If I were to drop my car off for an oil change, I’d need my wife to pick me up and then take me back to retrieve the car. To me, it’s often better to wait rather than inconvenience her and take away her productive or leisure time. I’m happy to read my book (or knit) wherever. If I’m getting something done by having my oil changed at the same time, it seems to me that I’m spending that time in both kinds of activities at once — being productive by getting the oil changed and having leisure time by reading or knitting.

I always struggle with a balance in life. Leisure time is hard for me since once I get home from work I have so much to do!

I’m hoping that after I have my baby in September and become a stay at home mom that I’ll be able to enjoy leisure time aside from the work that needs to be done. Fortunately I really enjoy house work!

Trent: getting an oil change isn’t a cost of living in an apartment. It’s a cost of owning a car.

From the number of people who agree with me (though for other reasons), I think this is just one of those things that you see differently because your lifestyle is pretty much opposite a lot of ours.

I’m not even changing my own wiperblades anymore- by the time I went and bought the blades, figured out how to put them on, blah blah, not worth the $2 savings. Plus that you can toss in the garbage, unlike oil.

Bonus points, though, for not using the TV is a waste of time example for once.

1-Apartment dwellers with limited tool storage probably will pay for the oil change.
2-Anyone not absolutely destitute can afford a book and reading is not a time-waster unless you read pure junk. Smartphones have e-readers and budgeting or other apps which can be updated during the wait time.
This also applies to the cost and time trade-offs on mass transit.
3-The law of diminishing returns applies here. Can you make enough in your freed-up time to cover the fees/wages plus the hassle–a substantial hassle in the case of domestic taxes and paperwork?
4-Do you enjoy the routine work? Some utilize grunt work for mindfulness meditation, or find it otherwise relaxing.

I think it’s funny you used the example of an “Jiffy Lube”oil change as a waste of time. In my life I consider it a time saver. I have to make a bank deposit for work about 3 times a week and drive by a “Jiffy Lube” to get to the bank. When I start to notice it’s time for an oil change I start to pay attention to the line of cars. In the past 6 years I have never waited in line. When I notice it is empty I pull right in.. I don’t even get out of the car when they change the oil, usually clean out my purse and straighten up the truck while I wait. I have never spent more than 10-15 min. max each visit and leave with new oil and a clean purse! Yes, it costs more to have someone else do it, but hey I guess this is one life’s luxuries for me..I am not about to crawl under an SUV and do it myself.

It’s funny cause I just had my oil changed today. I’ll be honest, I don’t know how to do it and I don’t like to get dirty. It’s well worth it for me to drive 10 mins to the oil change place and spend 20 mins letting them do it while I read a book or check on email via my phone. I can only imagine how much time it would take me to change my oil – more than 30 mins I suspect when you log in the time to drive to the auto parts place for filter, oil, etc. I also think I’d probably hurt something eventually – cut my hand, tear a nail, etc.

My point is some activities are productive uses of our time and some are not. Changing oil is not worth it to me. However I will replace wiper blades or the air filter – it’s safer and cheaper than having jiffy lube do it. I don’t do yard work and neither does my husband – we’ve both mildly injured ourselves in the past fiddling with blades, weedeater twine, hedgetrimmers, etc. And we dont’ enjoy it – so much so that we put it off til the job is twice as hard as it should be. But I do clean the house – I don’t mind it, I do a good job and I know I won’t hurt myself. Plus you do housework year round – yard work just in the summer for the most part – so if you have to choose one it’s cheaper to have a lawn worker than a maid. We all choose tasks we enjoy and are capable at – we do those ourselves to save money. Other jobs we hire out due to our lack of ability to do them and do them well.

We have a biweekly housekeeper, a biweekly lawn guy, and a mechanic. I could technically do all of this myself, but I don’t want to. I want to save for my future and live in my present…my ideal life just doesn’t include hours of chores, lawn care, or car services.

I’m not sure if the time I save is used for anything special, but I guess it would be considered “leisure time”…time with friends, hubby, family, and my blog. Of course, your definition of “wasted time” seems just a little silly…how often does anybody just sit around and really do nothing? I’m guessing from past posts that watching tv is “wasted time”, but I’ve already disagreed with that, so I’ll move on. I think paying for services is awesome if you have your financial life in order already. It’s not like I can take all of my “saved” money to the grave with me…

As for hiring someone to do stuff you can do for yourself, if everyone did everything for themselves where would all of these debt-ridden people find those part-time jobs that are always mentioned as a way to get out of debt ? Sometimes it is just nice to sit and do nothing while the guy is changing my oil etc.

Amazing Trent, great article again. I’m always pleasantly surprised when i visit your site. Thanks for another great and applicable article.

I was thinking exactly the same thing, Steffie.

We don’t have to do *everything* ourselves. Otherwise even more people would be unemployed! When I go to a hairdresser to have my hair cut, when I hire professionals to paint my walls, etc, I am contributing to the economy. Other people hire *me* to do specific jobs they can’t (or won’t) do themselves.

I have also said before that I don’t particularly care for having every minute of my time accounted for. Today I took a couple of buses to run a few errands. During the trips, I looked at the views, checked my e-mail on my phone, and so on. Waste of time? Nope. I needed those few minutes of downtime today.

I choose to get my oil changed at the most expensive place in town. Why? Because I can sit in my car while they do it, and I don’t have to get my 3 kids out, try and keep them calm in a waiting room, then load them back up. If I were to try and do it at home, I’d have to hire a sitter to come watch the 3 kids while I did it! Not to mention the fee charged for recycling old oil. So, I have 3 choices, 1) Hire a sitter, change my own oil, and pay the recycling fee 2) Take my kids to a cheap oil change place and fight with them for an hour or 3) Go to the more expensive place, sit in the car with everyone strapped in car seats, and pay for the privilege. I’ll go with option 3. To me, it’s something worth paying for.

If you do hire help, please treat those providing this work fairly. I hired a lawn service a few years ago, always dealing with the business office. One day, in speaking with one of the two workers mowing and trimming my grass, they told me they were being paid $6 an hour and were expected to finish two yards per hour. I was paying $30 for their 30 minutes a week of work on my yard–and they were getting $3 each for that half hour. I asked them if they would come and take care of my yard themselves (using my mower and trimmer) in the evenings for $25. They were very excited for the chance. I encouraged my neighbors to do the same.

These guys eventually started their own lawn business, and they make a lot more than minimum wage. I hate the thought that someone might be mowing my yard or scrubbing my floors for minimum wage, while someone else pockets the profits. Get to know the people who are doing work for you and help make sure they are treated fairly.

Good post — I wrestle with this concept when I consider hiring a house cleaner. I have arrived at a similar place. Sometimes I miss out on fun activities because I work all week, have five kids under ten and then on the weekends I need to clean and organize. However, I am forced to focus and hone my time. When I have hired a house cleaner I’ve found that I didn’t better use my time. To constrast, when I have a lot to do it becomes about priorities. When I prioritize my kids, and then teach them to clean with me then things work the best. If I can’t get done everything on my list, I begin to question priorities and think about simplifying.