Whoever made that saying up? I’ll ask Ai:
The phrase "time is money" is often attributed to Benjamin Franklin, who popularized it in his essay “Advice to a Young Tradesman" published in 1748. In the essay, Franklin writes:
"Remember that time is money. He that can earn ten shillings a day by his labour, and goes abroad, or sits idle, one half of that day, though he spends but sixpence during his diversion or idleness, ought not to reckon that the only expense; he has really spent, or rather thrown away, five shillings besides."
The phrase emphasizes the idea that time, like money, is a valuable resource and should be used wisely. Franklin's point was that wasting time is equivalent to losing money because time that could have been spent productively is lost forever, just like money spent on unnecessary things.
The concept of equating time with money has roots even before Franklin. The idea can be traced back to earlier thinkers like **Theophrastus**, a Greek philosopher, who spoke about the value of time in philosophical terms. The notion was also present in various cultural and economic contexts throughout history, as time became more closely associated with productivity and economic value, especially during the Industrial Revolution.
Ok, you are always so smart ai. My question I’m still pondering is about using money to have a good time. Feels like there is a point where: Money = Good Time. I don’t feel like time can be wasted. I feel that you can either be earning money or using money and both are good uses of time. Maybe the way you waste time is if you are neither earning or spending. Now that I write that out, it feels like the best use of time is when you are neither earning nor spending you are just present in the now.
Happy 420
SP
Your last line nailed it! We place far too much weight on money. The best use of time has everything to do with creating value, which often has nothing to do with making or spending money but, rather, just being.
My best use of time yesterday was being with an amazing human being whose business is struggling. We opened vistas to some very real solutions to what he is facing. It didn't cost either of us a dime. And all we spent was quality time in discovering solutions to core issues — which, I might add, were not directly related to money, even though he thought for sure more money was required to address his quandary.
“Now that I write that out, it feels like the best use of time is when you are neither earning nor spending you are just present in the now.”
^^^that is the world I live in except it sounds a lot sexier when you write it