How to Buy Back Your Time
“Honestly, I was a bit surprised when I first delved deep into this topic. I thought it was just about how to make more money, but it wasn’t. To be precise, it was an opportunity to reconsider the fundamental reasons for earning and spending money. I suspect you might be grappling with similar thoughts.”
The Story of the World’s Richest Janitor
Here’s a story of two very contrasting individuals.
One is a legendary investment banker on Wall Street. He lives in a penthouse in Manhattan, flies a private jet, and hundreds of billions of won move at his slightest gesture. However, his day starts at 4 AM and doesn’t end until past midnight. He can’t turn off his phone, which rings all year round, and dinner appointments with his family are frequently canceled. He earns a tremendous amount of money, but not a single minute of his time is his own.
The other was an ordinary gas station attendant and department store janitor named Ronald James Read. He worked the same job for decades, drove an old truck, and people around him saw him as just a poor but diligent neighbor. When he passed away in 2014 at the age of 92, people were stunned. His estate amounted to a staggering $8 million (approximately 9 billion won), most of which he donated to local hospitals and libraries. He lived frugally his entire life and consistently invested his salary in blue-chip stocks.
Now, let me ask you a question. Who truly lived a more ‘wealthy life’?
We’ve been asking the wrong question about wealth for a long time. Instead of “How can I make more money?”, the essence is closer to “What do you intend to do with money?” The greatest dividend money can give you isn’t a Lamborghini or a luxury watch.
It is the very fact that, “When you wake up tomorrow morning, you can do whatever you want with your day.”
The Paradox of Golden Handcuffs: Why Does Life Get Tougher the More You Earn?
Most of us follow a similar path. Good university, stable job, higher salary. As our income increases, we move into a bigger house, buy a better car, and go to more expensive restaurants. Increasing our standard of living is undeniably pleasant. However, a subtle trap lies within this.
It’s the snare of ’lifestyle inflation’. As our spending increases in proportion to our income, we find ourselves needing to earn more money than before just to ‘maintain’ our current lifestyle. Ultimately, a high salary doesn’t become wings that set us free; it transforms into ‘Golden Handcuffs’ that prevent us from making other choices.
We force ourselves to do unfulfilling work, say ‘yes’ to unreasonable demands, and waste time in meaningless meetings. It’s a paradoxical situation where we become slaves to money, rather than money working for us. Was a larger apartment mortgage payment the only thing I truly wanted, in exchange for surrendering control of my life?
Rebellion of the Era: FIRE Movement and Quiet Quitting
In recent years, a new movement rejecting ‘golden handcuffs’ has been spreading across society. These are the ‘FIRE movement’ and ‘Quiet Quitting’, two phenomena. While they may seem different on the surface, they are merely different expressions of the same desire: ‘I want to be in control of my time.’
🔥 FIRE Movement: All-Out War for Freedom
‘Financial Independence, Retire Early’. The FIRE movement aggressively saves 70-80% of their income and invests it to achieve this goal. Their objective is to reach a state in their late 30s or early 40s where they no longer have to work for money, thus achieving ‘complete liberation from labor.’
For them, money is not a means of consumption but ‘freedom purchase capital’ to buy back all the time remaining in their lives.
🤫 Quiet Quitting: Guerrilla Warfare to Protect My Time
However, not everyone can become a FIRE adherent. Among the majority of employees who cannot quit their jobs immediately, passive resistance known as ‘Quiet Quitting’ is emerging.
‘Quiet Quitting’ is not the act of actually handing in a resignation. It’s an attitude of ‘I will only do as much work as I’m paid for.’ They refuse overtime, don’t answer company calls outside of work hours, give up expectations for promotions or performance, and perform only the minimum necessary roles. This is a rational self-defense strategy for the younger generation against burnout and the collapse of work-life balance, and a desperate ‘guerrilla warfare’ to protect a minimal human life and time within the system.
Ultimately, the all-out war of the FIRE movement and the guerrilla warfare of quiet quitters are heading towards the same goal. That is ‘reclaiming the control of our lost time.’
The World’s Most Valuable Currency: ‘Time’
Why are we so obsessed with time control? Numerous studies on happiness consistently reach the same conclusion. Beyond a certain income level, the impact of money on happiness rapidly diminishes. Instead, the most important variables determining happiness are ‘autonomy’ and ‘social relationships.’
The feeling that I am in control of my own life, and the feeling that I am spending enough time with loved ones. These two are the core of happiness.
Money is the most powerful tool that can buy these two things.
- A 100 million won sports car offers a thrilling pleasure, but that pleasure quickly becomes familiar.
- However, 100 million won in surplus funds gives you the courage to say, “This project doesn’t suit me, so I’m quitting.” It allows you to stay by your sick child’s side or spend your parents’ birthdays with them without worrying about taking leave.
Which of these would fundamentally change your life more? Think of money as ‘stored time’ or ’energy.’ You can exchange this energy for goods, or you can exchange it for future ‘free time.’
Concrete First Steps to Buy Back Your Time
If you’ve thought, “I want to get my time back too,” put aside grand plans for a moment and consider these three things you can start today.
1. Define ‘My Enough’
Don’t chase after success criteria defined by others. Don’t fall into the trap of ’lifestyle inflation’ by envying the glamorous lives on social media. What truly brings you satisfaction? How much per month can you live comfortably and happily without anxiety? Defining this standard of ’enoughness’ for yourself is the beginning of everything. Your goal isn’t to become a millionaire, but to achieve ’enough’ and be free from everything else.
2. Create a ‘Freedom Reserve’
Before saving for retirement, create a reserve that can buy you immediate freedom. The mere fact that you have 3-6 months of living expenses in your bank account will dramatically change your life. The psychological security of thinking, “So what, I can quit and take a few months off to find something else” when you experience unfair treatment at work. This is the most immediate freedom money can provide.
Image caption: The ‘Freedom Reserve’ goes beyond simply saving money; it provides psychological security that broadens life choices. alt text: A clear glass piggy bank half-full of coins and bills, with a handwritten label that says Freedom Fund.
3. Before Spending, Convert It to ‘Time’
Before buying a 1 million won smartphone, pause and consider: “How many hours of my life did I have to work to buy this?” The habit of converting all money into time will fundamentally change your spending patterns and make you realize what is truly important.
What is Your Day Worth?
Let’s return to the initial question. The Wall Street banker and the Vermont janitor, who was richer?
In terms of asset value, the banker is overwhelmingly ahead. However, the banker who couldn’t own even a minute of his time, and Ronald Read, who lived a simple but lifelong life of complete control over his own time. If measured by ‘freedom,’ perhaps the richest person in the world was the ordinary janitor.
True wealth is not measured by the number in your bank account. It is the right to wake up in the morning without an alarm and to fully decide for yourself who to spend the day with and what to do.
Now, I ask you.
What is your day, your time, worth? And to buy back that time, what will you do today?
References
- Housel, M. (2020). The Psychology of Money: Timeless lessons on wealth, greed, and happiness.
- Easterlin, R. A. (1974). Does Economic Growth Improve the Human Lot? Some Empirical Evidence.
- Comprehensive compilation of related media reports and academic materials