Logic Flaw

The following comic is from XKCD.COM licensed under Creative Commons.

 

My High School Physics teacher used the same kind of logic for work around the house. He calculated how long it would take to do a project and multiplied it by his current teaching wage. If he could pay someone to do it cheaper, he would do that rather than take on the project himself. He reasoned he was somehow saving money, or not wasting his time, by doing so.

I had a problem with this logic then, as I do with the comic above today.

What will you be doing with that time if you are not building a deck or driving to the other gas station? Or more directly, are you earning any money during that time that you're not doing those tasks?

Most often, the answer is 'No'. You won't be earning an money and you will either be sitting on your butt and watching TV or out spending money on stuff you don't need.

So here's my reality: I'd rather 'work for minimum wage' driving to a nearby gas station to save a couple dollars than do nothing different and loose that couple of dollars out of laziness.

And when it comes to building a deck, I'd do that during my time off from work when I wouldn't be earning any money anyway. By doing it myself, I 'earn' that wage I would otherwise be paying someone else and learning a skill in the process. In the end, I always feel better about something I'd completed myself over paying someone to do it for me.

So think about it next time you think saving a few bucks is not worth your time. Your probably not getting paid a dime for just standing there anyway, whereas doing a little work pays you back the money you'd otherwise be throwing away.