How much is your time worth?

[manageME7]

Time and its worth depend upon a number of other factors. To a busy business owner it might be $2000/hour or more, for a doctor it might be $800/hour.
Time and money depends upon various factors such as qualifications, need of the person, circumstances etc.The cost/hour may vary from person to person according to their need.

Life is so simple, do not make it difficult. Just try to manage yourself.

[Goldy1]

I have worked for dr's and they valued thier time, but definitely not to the tune of $800 or anything near it an hour.
I have spnt time on getting certain medical claims paid that would not exceed my salary per hour. I have been in situations at work where I had to make 5 phone calls to fix a $5 underpayment literally. lol, but it was my job to clear the balance sheet.

[boosami]

Originally Posted by cicy33

That is exactly how I do it as well. I clean house, cook dinner, sort through papers, surf the net all while on the phone. But I will not let anyone overcharge me. It may be a mistake but it needs to be corrected.

Multitasking aside, say a retailer mischarges you and the only way to correct it is to talk with the store manager, which means waiting in a lobby for an hour before speaking with him. Would you really wait in the lobby an hour for a penny? $5? $10? At what point would you just walk away saying "It's not worth it..."

What if you have to take a day off work? Is the "principle" of an error worth losing an entire day's pay?

[disneysteve]

Originally Posted by boosami

say a retailer mischarges you and the only way to correct it is to talk with the store manager, which means waiting in a lobby for an hour before speaking with him. Would you really wait in the lobby an hour for a penny? $5? $10? At what point would you just walk away saying "It's not worth it..."

What if you have to take a day off work? Is the "principle" of an error worth losing an entire day's pay?

That's a pretty unrealistic extreme example. If I asked for the manager and was told he wasn't available for an hour, I'd leave my phone number and ask that he call me when he was free. Of course I wouldn't sit and wait that long to speak to him, probably for any realistic amount of money. I'd find another way to handle the situation or schedule an appointment to meet with him.

If I had to take a day off of work, it would have to be an amount roughly comparable to what I would earn that day, though there are exceptions to that. I would take the day off to fight a motor vehicle ticket to keep my driving record clean, for example, or to meet with a bank official about an error that had a negative impact on my credit rating. It isn't all about money.

[boosami]

Originally Posted by disneysteve

I would take the day off to fight a motor vehicle ticket to keep my driving record clean, for example, or to meet with a bank official about an error that had a negative impact on my credit rating. It isn't all about money.

Good point, Steve. And I think that's what everyone is getting at here--it's never just about the money. Whether it's the principle, keeping your record clean, or making sure errors go corrected, money is just a part of it.

But I just want to know the basics... If I said "I will pay you $X to stand in this empty room and do nothing for one hour," at what $X would you do it? I know it's free money, but surely $0.01 wouldn't be enough, right?

[disneysteve]

Originally Posted by boosami

But I just want to know the basics... If I said "I will pay you $X to stand in this empty room and do nothing for one hour," at what $X would you do it? I know it's free money, but surely $0.01 wouldn't be enough, right?

Understood, but I don't think there is a simple answer to that question.

Here is a real-life example. I have the opportunity to do many online surveys targeted to physicians. They typically pay at a rate of about $100/hour or more. I do a lot of them, but I don't do them all. Why? Because sometimes when I get an invitation, I just don't feel like doing it, or I'm busy with other things, or I'm tired or there is something I really want to see on TV that night. So sometimes I decide $100/hour is worth my time and other times I decide it isn't worth my time.

If you wanted to pay me to sit in an empty room (I'd rather sit than stand) for an hour, how much I would want to be paid would vary based on the circumstances. If I could pick the day and time and schedule it at my convenience and the location was close by, I'd probably do it for $50. If you want me to miss work to do this, I'd want more, probably $100 at least. If there was any travel involved or expense (gas, tolls, parking) I'd want that factored in, too.

I periodically get invited to do in-person surveys at a location about 20 minutes away. They typically pay $200. I've done it numerous times, but most times I decline because getting there, parking, dealing with city traffic, etc. is just a hassle to me and the money isn't that important. If they raised the fee to $500, I would probably change my mind.

[cschin4]

Your time is only actually worth what someone is willing to pay you for it. I think it is kind of funny to hear people say what their time is "worth". It isn't worth anything to anybody but you.

[sweeps]

Steve hit the nail on the head. How much your time is worth is not fixed. The question is what are you giving up at that moment to do the requested activity. I may be willing to do an activity for $1 at a particular time because I'm bored and have nothing else to do. On the other hand, I may not want to do an activity for $100,000 if I would miss something important, like say my child's wedding.

[disneysteve]

Originally Posted by sweeps

Steve hit the nail on the head. How much your time is worth is not fixed. The question is what are you giving up at that moment to do the requested activity. I may be willing to do an activity for $1 at a particular time because I'm bored and have nothing else to do.

Exactly. Staying with my medical surveys, some of them don't pay much but they're simple to do, so I do them every time. Others pay very well but they are boring and tedious, so I often skip them. I may accept $15 to do a simple 15 minute survey but turn down $50 to do a very complex 15 minute survey. It isn't just the time but the mental effort involved.

The value I place on my time is variable.

[Exile]

Originally Posted by disneysteve

I would take the day off to fight a motor vehicle ticket to keep my driving record clean, for example, or to meet with a bank official about an error that had a negative impact on my credit rating. It isn't all about money.

It may not be all about the money in the short term, and this is why it's important to consider the big picture when addressing the question re value of one's time. The impact on my auto insurance rates would likely be way above and beyond the amount of a moving violation ticket which I have a chance to fight successfully, similarly with an unjustified ding on my credit rating which could cost me more in interest and other penalties in the long run (not to mention a blot on my reputation). But if the error were the lender's fault and I had to lose a day's wages or encounter other expenses to pursue the matter, I would expect the creditor to compensate me for my troubles.