Evaluating your life in terms of $$ / hr [Archive]

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teddyFBI

11-21-2005, 09:00 PM

I've just recently begun to do something rather peculiar:

I was always raised to be very cost-conscious >> clip coupons whenever possible, haggle for a better price, return an item and buy it elsewhere if you can find it for $10 less.

Which is why my newfound poker wealth is really F'ing with my head -- I was waiting for the bus in the rain the other day, when it dawned on me that I could really just take a taxi for $4 more...I was only going around 15 blocks, so something inside me told me that just hopping in a cab would be wasteful, but then I thought to myself: "hold on, since my poker earn rate is roughly $200 / hr, even if this taxi only saves me 10 minutes, the extra $4 will have been MORE than worth it, if it allows me to get in an extra 10 minutes (~$35) at the tables."

As much time as I spend playing, it's made me even more conscious of how valuable our very short time on this planet is. Paradoxical, of course, because I really don't want to spend the majority of it sitting in front of a computer screen. (I don't know where I was going with this post...I swear I had a point to make when I started it...oh well, guess i'll end it here, since it's already 'cost' me $35.)

Klepton

11-21-2005, 09:59 PM

this is good thinking, just don't let it get out of hand.

recently i thought "i don't care about 30 bucks, so i'm not gonna mail in that rebate, i already got the item."

11-21-2005, 10:04 PM

[ QUOTE ]
...my poker earn rate is roughly $200 / hr...

[/ QUOTE ]
And you worry about $4 for a friggin' cab? Gimme a break.

lehighguy

11-21-2005, 10:05 PM

I pay $1,300/month for an apartment in the city just to save two hours a day.

Seriously, buying time on this earth is one of the best investments you can make. It is a scarce resource.

P.S. I do the same analysis no matter what my job. When I was playing poker in college I spent somewhat freely, now that I work at a really tough job for less money I won't even pay $4 for those cookies I want.

11-22-2005, 12:56 AM

Over time, this will keep you from doing anything but earn money.

"I can't go to that movie/ballgame/orgy/school play; it'll cost me $100/$1000/$12.65 in lost income!"

teddyFBI

11-22-2005, 01:43 AM

[ QUOTE ]
Over time, this will keep you from doing anything but earn money.

"I can't go to that movie/ballgame/orgy/school play; it'll cost me $100/$1000/$12.65 in lost income!"

[/ QUOTE ]

yeah, i think that was the essence of the point i was driving to in my original post that i somehow lost sight of.

It's really a mindf'uck. It's like a balancing act trying to decide which of your life pursuits are worth evaluating on a purely financial scale (i.e. do i fill out and mail in this rebate for $30, which will take me 20 mins?) and others that are 'non-negotiable'; i.e. seeing Walk the Line is technically -EV, but in the grander scheme will probably pay greater dividends to my well-rounded nature.

11-22-2005, 01:44 AM

Pog0

11-22-2005, 02:09 AM

Despite rambling and not really making any conclusions in your post, I still feel inclined to say "well put."

It'll become very dangerous if we start thinking of all our time in terms of how much money we could have made instead. We don't want to go out because by staying home and working we can make $xx.xx instead. Well we can't work all day, so we shouldn't think of our fun time as money wasted.

As for the converse, the cab vs the bus... I just can't think up any good arguments for one or the other right now.

Only thing I can think of right now is that there are more factors than just money involved in this scenario. Quality of ride, waiting time... pensive time, potential to see something humorous or worthwhile on the bus.. I don't know, I've rambled more in this response than you did in your OP, probably because I'm procrastinating right now.

soko

11-22-2005, 03:02 AM

This may seem profound to you but every person on this earth quantifies their extance in "blocks", not so many use hours but many of us use things like weeks, this week ill make $500 at my job and spend $120 on food, etc.; months, your bills, rent is due, subtract subtract; years, ill graduate from college in 2 years; decades, in 30 years my house will be paid off. you can just as easily go they other way around and figure out how much money you make between breaths. it's all very logical and i think about this stuff alot.

Nietzsche

11-22-2005, 08:13 AM

[ QUOTE ]
[ QUOTE ]
...my poker earn rate is roughly $200 / hr...

[/ QUOTE ]
And you worry about $4 for a friggin' cab? Gimme a break.

[/ QUOTE ]
Maybe that's why he got there.

stigmata

11-22-2005, 08:56 AM

A logical way to approach the problem:

If a time saving device costs less than my equivalent earn at the poker table, and the saved time would have been less fun than playing poker, then it's worth doing. e.g. it is +EV in terms of both earning and enjoyement.

This is my justification for hiring a cleaner, anyhow /images/graemlins/cool.gif It would also justify getting taxi's, ordering food etc.

Obviously life is a little more complex....

sternroolz

11-22-2005, 01:52 PM

Yeah, same thing for me sort of. I can drive the 15 miles to work. It costs me $10.50 per day to do this due to gas and parking costs. I park directly at work and it takes me 20 seconds to get from my car to my cubicle. Average commute is 20 minutes to work and about 35 minutes home. Or I can have my employer subsidize my way on the subway. That costs me nothing. But I have to get in my car, drive to the station, wait for the subway, wait at each stop, and walk 4 blocks to work. Total time from my front door to my cubicle is 50 minutes to work and 1 hour 15 minutes home. Needless to say, that hour plus is well worth the $10.50 it costs. A bit of a pain in the butt to put out $200 a month towards this, but worth it.

[ QUOTE ]
I pay $1,300/month for an apartment in the city just to save two hours a day.

Seriously, buying time on this earth is one of the best investments you can make. It is a scarce resource.

P.S. I do the same analysis no matter what my job. When I was playing poker in college I spent somewhat freely, now that I work at a really tough job for less money I won't even pay $4 for those cookies I want.

[/ QUOTE ]

stoxtrader

11-22-2005, 05:07 PM

opportunity cost is definitely an important consideration when trying to measure utility. Maximizing EV in terms of dollars is just one step towards maximizing utility - which is a depressing clinical way to say i try to get the most happiness and fulfillment out of my life.

it is also by looking at utility, that you can justify vactions/time off/ movies, etc. etc....

11-22-2005, 05:41 PM

Orgy...$1000 in lost income

Playing on a laptop during your kid's school play....priceless

11-22-2005, 06:53 PM

<ul type="square"> http://i11.photobucket.com/albums/a200/Nut4Dawgs/laugh.gif [/list]

11-22-2005, 07:22 PM

Like most others stated here, I usually think in terms of opportunity cost (I'm an economist and capitalist, what can I say.) You'd be surprised at how many people don't. I know a guy who used to run a Mail Boxes Etc. and he sold stamps. He'd sell 37 cent stamps for 40 cents. Typical markup to make a profit, right? You wouldn’t believe how many people will not buy that one stamp because “you can’t charge 40 cents for a 37 cent stamp!” Well, what’s the alternative? Drive to a post office or somewhere and buy one stamp, which will save you a whopping three cents…and cost you ten minutes and more than three cents in gas. Same logic goes for driving across town to save 20 cents on a gallon of milk. What a waste of time! But as stated, don’t get carried away with this “poker earn rate vs. other activity” comparison. You may miss out on a lot of fun stuff.

ScottieK

11-22-2005, 07:48 PM

[ QUOTE ]
You may miss out on a lot of fun stuff.

[/ QUOTE ]
Bingo! Flamin' trip 7's! Royal Flush!

Pay this man.

bearly

11-23-2005, 12:49 AM

who would play poker if they knew what every person on earth did? imagine what that would be worth, properly marketed. well maybe you have had a few daydreams about what half a dozen people think and do. same thing---this is a poker forum....................b

LImitPlayer

11-23-2005, 02:34 AM

Heres a thought, buy a laptop and play poker while you are waiting for the bus

Pog0

11-23-2005, 07:55 AM

[ QUOTE ]
Heres a thought, buy a laptop and play poker while you are waiting for the bus

[/ QUOTE ]

I mean, I guess eventually we'll all have wireless access everywhere.

11-23-2005, 12:32 PM

[ QUOTE ]

Bingo! Flamin' trip 7's! Royal Flush!

Pay this man.

[/ QUOTE ]

I only bring up the obvious because a couple of my friends took this thinking to the extreme. Next thing you know, they're missing classes, not studying, not sleeping. One actually said to me "well, if I only sleep five hours a day, that's three extra hours of poker." Never mind he was already logging eight hours a day or more.

So what do I win?

ScottieK

Eaglesfan1

11-23-2005, 07:02 PM

Your poker rate is 200$ an hour and you don't have a car?

Freakin

11-23-2005, 07:34 PM

[ QUOTE ]
[ QUOTE ]

Bingo! Flamin' trip 7's! Royal Flush!

Pay this man.

[/ QUOTE ]

I only bring up the obvious because a couple of my friends took this thinking to the extreme. Next thing you know, they're missing classes, not studying, not sleeping. One actually said to me "well, if I only sleep five hours a day, that's three extra hours of poker." Never mind he was already logging eight hours a day or more.

So what do I win?

ScottieK

[/ QUOTE ]

They should work the 20 min ever 4 hours sleep schedule... they're definitely prime candidates for it. You can basically reprogram your body to fall into deep sleep as soon as you lay down for your 20 min nap. It takes about a week or two of programming, but your mind is actually MORE rested while on this schedule than most people.