Posted by Lending Club :: July 14, 2008 @ 9:20 am

Here on the Lending Club blog, I’ve previously asked you to consider what your time is worth. When the answer to that question is expressed as an hourly wage, an interesting follow-up question can be asked: how many hours would you work at that wage?

I wonder if your wage contentment, or lack thereof, stems from the number of hours that you work. In other words, are you happy with the money you make because 40 hours (or however long you currently work) at that rate makes you sufficient money to cover expenses? So the real question is, if you calculate that you’re worth $10 an hour, would you be willing to work at that rate for 10 hours a week? How about 100?

In thinking about the answer to those questions, we realize that our time doesn’t have a fixed dollar per hour value associated with it. The number of hours we spend working has something to do with the value of each additional hour. I believe that most of us would probably want a higher rate if we could only work for a few hours, would be content at our current wage up to a reasonable number of hours, and then would start to want progressively more money for more time worked. Stated another way, our first few hours are valuable because we have to give up not working to use them, then we reach a balance for a set number of hours, and finally each additional hour spent on the job becomes more and more valuable as we have fewer hours left for other things. Our age may also be a factor, since a young worker might feel like his or her time is less precious than an older worker.

A final question to consider: would you work half as many hours for half the pay or twice the hours for double the pay? Reflecting on these topics helps us to gain a better understanding of our relationship with money and the value of our time. Take a few minutes today and think about each of the scenarios posed. A better understanding of your relationship with money may help you to make more informed financial decisions and may ultimately improve your financial situation.