tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7678509565920140218.post6552768565805427367..comments2023-07-09T02:50:17.609-07:00Comments on The Personal Financier: Outsourcing Our Chores - Do We Overvalue Our Spare Time?Dorian Waleshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09182167078410203435noreply@blogger.comBlogger15125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7678509565920140218.post-36746218180272842322008-09-06T13:56:00.000-07:002008-09-06T13:56:00.000-07:00I do all my chores myself, even though I value my ...I do all my chores myself, even though I value my free time highly. The way I show I value my free time highly is in that I don't work long hours, I don't carry a cell phone (which would mean that my free time would be interupted by phone calls), I chose a job with great vacation time, I don't waste time with activities of little value like TV (although I guess I do waste time online), etc.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7678509565920140218.post-34964672967782385532008-09-05T06:42:00.000-07:002008-09-05T06:42:00.000-07:00An interesting take on this; truly worthy of an ed...An interesting take on this; truly worthy of an editor's pick.<BR/><BR/>In the past I've argued for outsourcing things that are "not worth your time," but this post makes good points about how this is based on the assumption that we are uber-productive in the time we gain by outsourcing. Most of us aren't. Heck, I'm not. <BR/><BR/>I maintain that if money weren't a concern, though, I'd eat out every night, just because I don't enjoy cooking and a high-quality restaurant meal is a real joy to me.Lise Fhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16254900461916653605noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7678509565920140218.post-36393912287178360852008-09-03T15:11:00.000-07:002008-09-03T15:11:00.000-07:00Very interesting post. I have thought a lot about...Very interesting post. I have thought a lot about this. Many of my friends outsource their chores, and fill up their weekends going to the beach, eating out, and shopping.<BR/><BR/>We have always tended to fill our weekends with cleaning, laundry, and household maintenance...with some sports and things tossed in.<BR/><BR/>Then we had a baby...who became a 2-year old. With two jobs and a kid, I finally decided to bite the bullet and outsource cleaning (I still cook almost all our meals, maybe we eat out once per week, tops). It is AMAZING. $15 an hour, 5 hours every two weeks. It would take us much longer to do the same type of job - probably 3 hours for the both of us, on a Saturday morning. And my house is finally CLEAN. All at the same time!<BR/><BR/>I'd rather spend those three hours at the park with my kid.Marciahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13984899661746845414noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7678509565920140218.post-8336235229027758742008-09-03T13:03:00.000-07:002008-09-03T13:03:00.000-07:00Thank you again for all your comments. A bit of cl...Thank you again for all your comments. A bit of clarification is in order.<BR/><BR/>Anyone familiar with my writing knows that my arguments are based on economic principles. I’m the last person to try and monetize everything and I’m actually speaking against it.<BR/>In my post I claim many of us use the excuse of the monetary value of their working hours to justify paying professionals to do their chores while usually corrupting away the spare time created.<BR/>I couldn’t agree more with the concept of prioritizing and the arguments made by the commentators to this post are actually in accordance with my argument. Spending time with your children or with your spouse should obviously have a higher economic value which most certainly justifies outsourcing our chores. I was merely trying to offer my readers a refreshing way of thinking about their spending habits. I most certainly believe most people have the time available to do their chores and choose to outsource them as this is a common practice these days. I personally don’t know many people who work 70-80 hour work weeks….<BR/>The last sentence in my post was “It is important to note that I believe having a big family, with two kids and more, changes the basic premises. The time required to properly tend to several children is obviously much greater and changes considerations”.<BR/>Maybe I should have been a bit clearer on the subject. I do apologize if I offended anyone. It was never my intention. It did get my writings a mention on MSN money ….Dorian Waleshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09182167078410203435noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7678509565920140218.post-22472173171231712852008-09-03T10:56:00.000-07:002008-09-03T10:56:00.000-07:00I liked this post a lot, so I went ahead and talke...I liked this post a lot, so I went ahead and talked about it in a post on my blog: http://ipickuppennies.blogspot.com/2008/09/most-of-us-arent-worth-it.html <BR/><BR/><BR/>I really hope I did you justice. And I hope it sends a little extra traffic your way.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7678509565920140218.post-4629747345965875362008-09-03T04:40:00.000-07:002008-09-03T04:40:00.000-07:00sorry i can't agree.I work 2 jobs and have a small...sorry i can't agree.<BR/>I work 2 jobs and have a small company. As soon as the cleaning lady starts charging me 175 per hour I'll consider doing it my self. (70-80 hrs per week is enough). My wife only has one job, but even with her tiny wages it only costs a couple hours of her pay for a 4 hr job... similarly I have no desire to power wash the exterior when it can be done professionally for 500$. Since I have plenty in the pipe, i see no reason to delay those efforts by wasting time on lower yield tasks.Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17729665887168950460noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7678509565920140218.post-9786195337854491902008-09-02T15:36:00.000-07:002008-09-02T15:36:00.000-07:00My, my but you have some outraged folks on MSN Sma...My, my but you have some outraged folks on MSN Smart Spending! It's vaguely comical that people still can't remember that opinions are like... elbows.<BR/><BR/>Okay, here's the deal: For someone in my position, you're generally quite right about it not being worth the cost. My husband and I live on very limited income and have debt. I think anyone who has significant debt has no business paying for it unless it's a physical problem.<BR/><BR/>And in that vein, my husband has agreed to cook if I do the dishes. (We each loathe the other's chore.)That was our major expense.<BR/><BR/>But there are some parents out there who work ridiculous hours and see their family rarely. So, yeah, maybe they should make it a game since kids eat that stuff up. But I can kind of see prioritizing and deciding some time spent *not* forcing your children to do chores is worth the money.<BR/><BR/>Or one woman who only sees her husbands on the weekend because they work in separate states. <BR/><BR/>But you're absolutely right when you say that we tend to overestimate the value of our free time. Just as we overestimate quite a bit of our self-worth in this country. It's the same attitude that got this country into the subprime mess: We *deserve* a really big house, new car, etc.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7678509565920140218.post-77042910094700086042008-09-02T14:39:00.000-07:002008-09-02T14:39:00.000-07:00Your post seems to include rates of big city, prof...Your post seems to include rates of big city, professional rates for a lot of the services. Perhaps with the difficulty of making ends meet these days, a neighbor's mother or a friend of a friend may be happy for the extra income. You'll gain some more hours a week and instead of spending money, perhaps then is a good time to consider how to make extra money.<BR/><BR/>If all else fails...try the barter system!Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7678509565920140218.post-83244825409737986572008-09-02T07:03:00.000-07:002008-09-02T07:03:00.000-07:00Love the post including the line about balance. N...Love the post including the line about balance. No doubt, for some people there is no time (demanding jobs, large families) and the money is there to outsource certain tasks. For others, not so much. But for many, there's a middle ground. You CAN, for instance, hire a cleaning service to come once a month instead of weekly and handle the day-to-day cleaning yourself. Similarly, you can hire somebody to do a deep dive into your yard once or twice a season while keeping the weekly mowing to yourself.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7678509565920140218.post-22352762095530286602008-08-31T19:44:00.000-07:002008-08-31T19:44:00.000-07:00I have to agree with the previous commenters if yo...I have to agree with the previous commenters if you're freeing your time up to do nothing then maybe you should just do your chores. Granted if you're working a 70 hour week some down time is nice but when its only a 40 hour week then you're not only being lazy but wasting your money. <BR/><BR/>I've been thinking about the whole shopping as a hobby phenomenon and the more I think about it we've conditioned ourselves to shop to spend our free time. When we were growing up we had hobbies and did activities but when we get older somehow we replace those with spending money (and then wonder why we're in debt).<BR/><BR/>Great post.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7678509565920140218.post-87152916141843005072008-08-31T12:19:00.000-07:002008-08-31T12:19:00.000-07:00This post has been included in the 141st Festival ...This post has been included in the 141st Festival of Frugality at Almost Frugal, going live September 2, 2008. Please link back to the festival when you get a chance!Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7678509565920140218.post-27942998038150148592008-08-31T11:44:00.000-07:002008-08-31T11:44:00.000-07:00Hmm... When I work for clients on a contract basis...Hmm... When I work for clients on a contract basis, I bill out my time at $40 to $60 an hour. So...would that make it worthwhile to pay a housekeeper $80 or $100 for the four-hour job of cleaning my house?<BR/><BR/>So far, I've thought not. However, as I age, I move slower and my enthusiasm for scrubbing floors and washing windows steadily wanes. The time may come when when I do think it's worth it. Other factors than just free time would then figure into the equation: waning strength to do very physical work (which cleaning most certainly is!), boredom with tedious jobs, less time in which to do things I'd much rather do.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7678509565920140218.post-36999574692552550242008-08-30T09:53:00.000-07:002008-08-30T09:53:00.000-07:00Thank you for commenting (and stumbling!).We're st...Thank you for commenting (and stumbling!).<BR/><BR/>We're still holding on but I suppose it might change as well.<BR/><BR/>Naturally, I agree circumstances may dictate otherwise.Dorian Waleshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09182167078410203435noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7678509565920140218.post-26830924499179354572008-08-30T05:30:00.000-07:002008-08-30T05:30:00.000-07:00I agree with capital couples, I love that line! S...I agree with capital couples, I love that line! Since I've gotten married, we try to do all of the chores ourselves. When I lived alone I paid someone to clean my house. I'd have spent all my free time doing chores, otherwise, and still not have completed them! I think it depends on the circumstances. I stumbled. LisaAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7678509565920140218.post-53535985300676355532008-08-29T05:42:00.000-07:002008-08-29T05:42:00.000-07:00I think your last point is the key. What do we do...I think your last point is the key. What do we do in our spare time? Try to fill it up. How do we fill it up? By spending money. Love it!Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com