Last year we made a video about how your free time cannot be valued the same as your hourly wage. This week we wanted to revisit that idea with the help of Joshua Sheats (Radical Personal Finance), Jason Fieber (Dividend Mantra), and Kraig Mathias (Create My Independence) as our special guests.
Links:
How Much is Your Free Time Worth – https://goo.gl/oZoPfG
Most Profitable DIY Skills for Beginners – https://goo.gl/B93xMC
The Convenience Paradox – https://goo.gl/TtV9BM
Joshua Sheats – https://radicalpersonalfinance.com/
Jason Fieber – https://dividendmantra.com/
Kraig Mathias – https://createmyindependence.com/
I’ve been thinking about this more and more since your last video, which happened to come out the same day I was doing the brakes on my truck. After a many- year hiatus on DIY car repair, I’ve started back doing my own oil changes and basic car repair, and I guess have always had a handyman streak around the house. (To quote Red Green: If the women don’t find you handsome, at least they should find you handy) If anything I have the opposite problem of erring too much on DIY and winding up buying tools and materials and spending time that may or may not have a net positive ROI on my finances. I do appreciate the “convenience factor” – I recently called multiple electricians only to have nobody show when they said they would. I “fired” them and did the job myself, and felt much better about it.
I also think it is important to think about who we want to be. In some ways, even if it’s not cost effective, I want to be the type of person who can do things himself for himself and others. I’m willing to not be as rich or not retire as early to grow that side of my life. My dad and grandfathers and great-grandfathers were “handy” (and in different skills, my mother and grandmothers), and I value that. I don’t think it’s a value everybody has to have to the same degree, but I do respect it and want to cultivate it in myself and my kids.
That said, I don’t know that I have the balance right all the time. I did the numbers on my chickens and am pretty sure I have the most expensive eggs on the planet. I feel like I could be doing more of my own online business/side gig/hustling if I weren’t doing my own brakes/lawn/electrical/chicken coop. Seeing you guys work these things out is an inspiration. Keep up the good work!
Hey Daniel,
Sounds like we’re very similar 🙂 We too often err on the side of DIY for the very reasons you mentioned:
1. Valuing self-reliance.
2. Convenience.
3. Respect for our grandparents generation (and skills).
It’s great finding like minded people. Good luck with the business/side gig/brakes/lawn/electrical/chicken coop!