Have you ever thought that you buy things with your life and not necessarily money or to say it another way, you buy things with the hours spent from your life? It's a radical notion, I understand, to think that when you make a purchase - let's say something really big like an 82" flat screen TV - what you're actually doing is exchanging a portion of your life for it.
Before dismissing my statement, hear me out.
On the assumption that you work an hourly pay and not receiving royalties or some form of passive or residual income, consider the following question for yourself: if you were to stop doing what you currently do for a living would your pay stop as well? For most people the response to this would be yes because, in essence, you're trading time for money which is a topic I discuss in my article "Pajama Money - Earn Passive Residual Income And Live The Lifestyle You Truly Want!" but, I digress. By trading time for money this then brings me back to my initial statement of, "you by things with the hours spent from your life." You might be asking how I came to this conclusion so let's jump into the facts.
According to Wikipedia the American median household income in January of 2019 was $63,688. In an effort of not getting into complex formulas I will use the simplest numbers possible and refrain from using tax and interest in my equations. So, for the sake of this conversation I will use conservative numbers by rounding down to balance this number out to $63,000 which would be $1,211.54 per week and $30.29 per hour.
Now, let's say you want to purchase that previously mentioned TV. After doing a quick search for "average price of an 82 inch TV in America today", I found the price tag to be upwards of $4,000. So what would it cost you in hours worked?
Samsung 82" Flat Screen TV ($4,000) = 132 hours of work or, 5.5 days
So, let's say you and I work together and one day you came into work and over heard me talking to another colleague saying, "Hey Jim guess what?!! Over the next five and a half days, I'll be working 132 countdowns hours just so that I'll be able to afford to buy my brand new 82" flat screen TV! Isn't it exciting?!!"
Forgive me, I know that was a bit hyperbolic but, it proves my point more clearly and I don't know about you but, doesn't that statement sound weird? Anyhow, by taking this approach it can help to put things into perspective or at the very least begin to raise your awareness. Of course you don't have to change your lifestyle or habits if you don't want to however, it is good counsel to just be more aware, that's all.
Let's take a quick moment now to look at some other common purchases:
Grande Starbucks Cappuccino ($4.00) = 0.13 hours of work or, 8 minutes
Apple iPhone 11 ($700) = 23 hours of work or, 1380 minutes
New Ford F-150 Truck ($28,000) = 3,864 hours of work or, 5.3 months
Median home listing price in the US ($226,800) = 31,536 hours of work or, 3.6 years
Remember, these numbers reflect time spent to earn the amount needed to make the purchase where day-to-day expenses and the like haven't been considered. And with this new perspective I'd also like for you to consider that over time, as inflation rises and prices continue to climb, your "sweat equity" begins to buy less meaning your time value worth is being reduced. When you consider that prices on average have gone up almost 50% over the last two decades it becomes easy to understand why so many people are struggling under mountains of debt from financing loans and credit cards to 30+ year mortgages.
It's staggering to see the actual numbers but, I've put together a brief report called, "Inflation - The Hidden Tax Agenda Silently Robbing You And Confiscating Your Wealth!" which highlight 3 agendas that depletes your money's value without you even realizing it.
If you'd like to learn more and even learn how you can guard yourself against inflation, then check out my free report by clicking here!
As a former independent insurance advisor and income protection specialist, Ryan provided clients with customized personal insurance and financial solutions through disability, life, critical illness, long-term care, and other personal insurance products. Today, his focus is on providing strategies for hedging income and preserving wealth through physical gold and silver acquisition.
https://www.usinflationcalculator.com/
https://www.businessinsider.com/cost-to-buy-a-house-in-every-state-ranked-2018-8
Article Source: https://EzineArticles.com/expert/Ryan_D._Forrester/2093018
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