Money Value of Time

Welcome back readers,

Those who are aware of financial terminology might have assumed that there is a mistake in the title, because the phrase “Time value of Money” is common in the field of finance. It deals with calculation of relative value of money at different time frames, simply putting it, Rs. 100/- in 2020 is neither same as Rs.100/- in 2010 nor same as it would be in 2030.

I am not writing on Time value of money; you will find a lot of reading material on the internet to know more about it. I am writing on “Money Value of Time” and thus, the title is right.

Money value of time means the value that one assigns to one’s own time. It is subjective and personal. We are free to think optimistic about value of our own time but it is essential to find a rational mean. Let’s look at a simple example – Say Mr. Arjun is a corporate trainer and quotes Rs.60,000/- for a day of training which lasts for about 6 hours. The figures enable us to immediately calculate the per hour rate and assume the same as time value which apparently would be Rs.10,000/- per hour. What if Arjun has to spend 2 days in travelling for the same single day training, will the quote remain same? Of course not! Hence, it is obvious that we are neglecting the hours spent for the training but not training itself, but when it comes to spending days, we become aware of the related extra hours rather days that has to be spent.

As I mentioned earlier, it is personal and subjective whether to calculate the value on daily basis or hourly basis. I would recommend it to be on hourly basis for self employed and daily basis for those in employment.

For a self-employed person, being aware of our own money value of time, we can easily decide upon material and immaterial matters. Aspects which we ourselves should look into and how much time it is worth and/or at what point we should withdraw.

Having unrealistic expectations either on lower or higher sides, both will lead to unfavorable outcomes. The problem of not evaluating the value of time as well as value of human effort is common in case of small business or the business which is in survival mode. At times it may be essential to overlook the value of time devoted, but it is always necessary to be aware of the same.

Spending time with family & friends is invaluable, going on vacations is more important than calculating the loss due to our absence in our business. I know every important matter cannot be valued on this basis, but it will give much needed clarity in many day-to-day matters and enable us to utilize our time more productively and decide on delegation to take advantage of leverage.

CA. Avinash Shukla

Email: caaashukla@gmail.com,

Mo: 9890184190

Comments

  1. Nicely articulated Avinashji reinforcing that time is money and underestimated even today

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