The Money Equation: Time, Happiness & Intentional Spending

We chase money as if it solves everything—what if the real currency is time and happiness?

In my last post, I called out the system that keeps us running on the hamster wheel. But identifying the trap is only step one. Today, I'm giving you the equation that changed how I think about every dollar I earn and spend.

Here's the framework:

• Spending 💸 → Does this dollar add real happiness?
• Earning 🛠️ → How much time am I trading for it?
• Time ⏳ → Every dollar costs hours of life.

This isn't about deprivation or living like a monk. It's about being intentional with the only resources that actually matter.

Spending with Intent: The Happiness Audit

Most of us spend on autopilot. We buy because we're bored, stressed, or trying to keep up with someone else's highlight reel. But what if we actually asked: Does this purchase genuinely bring joy, convenience, or meaning—or is it motivated by envy or status?

Here's what the research makes brutally clear: materialistic spending doesn't buy happiness. In fact, people who focus on buying things report fewer positive emotions, lower life satisfaction, and higher anxiety and depression. We accumulate stuff thinking it'll fill the void, but the hedonic treadmill just speeds up. Yesterday's splurge becomes today's baseline, and we're off chasing the next upgrade.

But experiences? That's where the magic happens. Harvard's Michael Norton and colleagues found that spending on experiences—vacations, concerts, dinners with friends—brings more lasting happiness than material purchases. Why? You get a triple happiness whammy: the pleasant anticipation before, the delight during, and the sweet memories after. Plus, you're less likely to envy your friend's trip to the mountains than their new car, because every experience is unique.

Psychologist Joan Harvey nails it: when you waste money on things that don't improve your life, you're also wasting time. Because "people often don't realize that budgeting money... could mean more spare time" saved from working.

The audit is simple:

• Track what you spend for a week
• Rate each purchase on genuine happiness added (1-10)
• Notice patterns: What actually moves the needle?

That quick online shopping fix? Probably a 2/10. Lunch with your best friend? 9/10. Joy is allowed. Hell, joy is the point. But mindless consumption? That's just trading life hours for landfill.

Time Is Irreplaceable: The Ultimate Non-Renewable Resource

Here's the uncomfortable truth: You're going to die. Not trying to be morbid—just honest.

Bill Perkins (author of "Die With Zero") cuts through the BS: if you spend endless hours working to save extra money but never spend it, you've "needlessly wasted too many precious hours of your life" that you can never reclaim. Money is just a means. Those hours are your life.

Research from Harvard, Wharton, and UBC involving nearly 5,000 people found something profound: people who prioritize time over money are significantly happier. But here's the kicker—only about half of people actually do this. The rest chase money first, driven by cultural pressure and fear.

Harvard professor Ashley Whillans puts it perfectly: "Even giving up a few hours of a paycheck to volunteer at a food bank may have more bang for your buck in making you feel happier."

Think about it:

• That promotion requiring 70-hour weeks? You're selling your 30s for a line on a resume
• The side hustle you hate? Trading Tuesday nights forever
• The 2-hour daily commute to save on rent? That's 500 hours yearly—three weeks of consciousness gone

Studies show older adults increasingly choose time over money. But by then, they've already spent decades they can't get back. The challenge is valuing your time now, not someday when your health is fading.

Same Joy, Lower Cost: The Geographic Arbitrage Reality

Let me hit you with numbers that'll make you question everything:

Los Angeles: $3,381/month for a single person

Lisbon: $1,926/month for a single person

That's Lisbon coming in at nearly 50% cheaper than LA. Same sunshine. Better coffee. Actual culture that isn't just influencer photo ops.

This isn't theoretical. Real people are making this trade. One LA expat who moved to Porto explains: "A big reason we moved was due to the high cost of living in California and the exorbitant healthcare prices in the U.S." In Portugal, she found safety, a slower pace, and family-friendly environment—without the crushing price tag.

That 50% difference? It means working half as many years to reach your savings goals. Or simply feeling less pressure each month about bills. Or having actual time to enjoy the life you're building.

This isn't about running away or fetishizing Europe. It's recognizing that the "premium" we pay in certain cities often buys us traffic, stress, and the privilege of being surrounded by other people also stressed about money.

Could you buy sunshine, culture, and connection—without the LA bill? The point isn't that everyone should move to Lisbon. The point is we accept geographic pricing like it's physics when it's really just collective agreement to overpay.

Sustainable Earning: When Work Feels Like Play

Here's my north star for income: Do something that feels fun to you—and looks like work to others.

This isn't fluffy "follow your passion" advice—it's strategic. When your work energizes rather than depletes you, the whole equation shifts. You're not grinding for retirement; you're building something sustainable.

Meet Ashley Couto, former COO pulling six figures but drowning in 60+ hour weeks. She spent her Paris vacation glued to work messages and realized her entire life had become work. So she walked away.

Now? She makes about one-third of her old salary through a remote role and side gigs. She even moved in with family to cut expenses. Her take: "My mental peace is worth a lot more than money." A year later, she has eight hours of sleep, hobbies, and presence with loved ones—things money couldn't buy when she was making three times more.

One survey found 55% of people would take a pay cut for their dream job. Money alone isn't the ultimate aim. The real optimization isn't maximizing income—it's minimizing the life cost of that income.

For you, this might mean:

• Turning a side-hustle you love into your main gig
• Negotiating a 4-day workweek for slightly less pay
• Saying no to promotions that pay well but bankrupt you in stress
• Taking a sabbatical to reclaim time and re-evaluate

The goal isn't to make the most money possible regardless of cost. It's to make enough money in a way that doesn't cost you your joy.

Redesigning Your Money Equation

We've been programmed to chase record income, accumulate status symbols, and defer happiness to some mythical "later." But once you see the real equation—time for money for happiness—you can't unsee it.

Here's your new playbook:

• Spend with intention. Before you swipe that card, think about the life energy behind those dollars. Your happiness yield per dollar will shoot up when you cut the mindless stuff.
• Value time as your scarcest asset. You can always earn another dollar, but you'll never get back another minute. Find ways to "buy" time—whether by outsourcing tasks you hate or working less and living on less.
• Earn in alignment. Better to make $50K doing something fulfilling than $150K in a grind that eats your life. The extra money is a poor trade for misery.

This week's challenge: Log three things daily: how you spent money, how you spent time, and your mood. You might discover your priciest habits bring no joy, while your happiest moments cost nothing. Maybe dinner at home with family beats the fancy meals you worked overtime to afford. Maybe that weekend hike makes you happier than any gadget.

The system wants you tired, distracted, and chasing the next purchase. But "success" isn't the highest salary or the biggest house. It's having enough money to live well and enough time to actually live. It's being in control of your days, not selling them to the highest bidder.

That's the new game. Your time for your happiness. Play it wisely, and on your own terms.

Your move.

The best time to start valuing your time over money was yesterday. The second-best time is now. Don't wait for retirement to start living—redesign your equation today.

References

1. Norton, M. I., Dunn, E. W., & Norton, M. I. (2011). If money doesn't make you happy, then you probably aren't spending it right. Journal of Consumer Psychology, 21(2), 115-125.

2. Perkins, B. (2020). Die With Zero: Getting All You Can from Your Money and Your Life. Houghton Mifflin Harcourt.

3. Whillans, A. V., Weidman, A. C., & Dunn, E. W. (2016). Valuing time over money is associated with greater happiness. Social Psychological and Personality Science, 7(3), 213-222.

4. Housel, M. (2020). The Psychology of Money: Timeless Lessons on Wealth, Greed, and Happiness. Harriman House.

5. Norton, M. I., & Dunn, E. W. (2014). Happy Money: The Science of Happier Spending. Simon & Schuster.

Related Posts

July 22, 2025

The 7 Shades of Freedom: Why Black-and-White Thinking Keeps You Broke

Stop thinking financial freedom is binary. Discover the 7 shades of freedom and learn why your mindset, not your bank account, determines your real wealth.

July 17, 2025

Financial Freedom Isn't About Quitting—It's About Control

Discover why financial independence is the only real freedom left in a system designed to keep you dependent. Learn how to reclaim control of your life through smart financial strategies.

July 29, 2025

The Time Poverty Industrial Complex: How They Profit From Your Exhaustion (And Why You Let Them)

You know that meditation app on your phone? The one you pay $12.99 a month for but never use? Calm is worth $2 billion because you're too burned out to breathe without a subscription. Welcome to the Time Poverty Industrial Complex—where your exhaustion isn't a bug, it's a feature.

The Arcanomy Team

We’re a group of passionate finance enthusiasts dedicated to making money management simple, actionable, and accessible for everyone.