What's It Worth to you?

At some point in the journey to adulthood, you realize that life is a never-ending process of decision-making. Some decisions are fun and easy (Where will I vacation? Which movie will I see tonight? Should I swipe right?) and others are a bit more complex. At some point, you also likely realize that there are costs associated with each choice you make. Some costs are obvious but other costs are less obvious and require sacrifices much greater than cash.

I used to tell my kids that everything has a price and, if they want something, they need to consider what it's really worth to them. Want to travel? Plan to commit to a demanding job that pays enough and allows you time off. Want a puppy? Be prepared for not only the cost but also the life commitment and chewed shoes.

This was always true for me in my career. As a corporate being, I was never motivated by job titles and I got bored easily. I had to continually look for more challenge to fill my day. I enjoyed learning, so I was constantly trying to evolve my role and I always stayed open to changing positions. The financial upside of a bigger work role is obvious and, because I craved the added challenge, there was always a mental upside. The downside of bigger roles, however, was the personal time that I had to sacrifice. Bigger jobs mean more hours away from family, hobbies and the things that brought me joy. By the end of my career, I was completely tethered to my electronic devices, even when I was on vacation. I became really good at juggling it all, but I didn't enjoy that distracted existence.

Since I have become semi-retired, time has become surprisingly valuable to me. You would think that once retired, time would be in such great supply that it would drive the value down but instead I find myself feeling quite protective of my schedule. For every new activity or commitment that I take on, I spend some time considering the cost and have become rather good at saying no. So, when I decided to begin volunteering locally, I spent a lot of time on cost/benefit calculations. You would think that the sole consideration for a potential volunteer role would be the value that I could provide but my math selfishly included my own enjoyment. Of course, the primary goal is still to donate my time in a way that improves my community, but my own enjoyment and sense of fulfillment are still high on the list.

The good news is that I found a perfect volunteer role, supporting a local organization that does amazing work. The role offers me variety, flexible scheduling and continuous learning. Ironically, one of the key learnings thus far is that even when volunteering at a place that makes you happy, I can still be selfish about who shares that time. People who give their time and best efforts to the community are a blessing but that doesn't mean I enjoy spending time with them. Frankly, some of them just aren't my cup of tea. In my working days, I would have just rolled with it and collaborated as expected. The salary would have mitigated the cost of annoying interactions. As a volunteer, turns out that I am not so tolerant. This new self-awareness doesn't fill me with pride, but it also doesn't stop me from volunteering. Turns out it is worth it to me. At least I am still learning.

Three key new insights thus far:

1. We always value our time; we just redefine what we value as our circumstances change.

2. What, where and "who with" are all relevant albeit petty considerations when choosing a volunteer role.

3. I am, sadly, turning into the crotchety neighbor scaring kids off the lawn.