would your rather work longer hours for more money or fewer for less?

PasturesNew

Not working at the moment, but when I do a typical week is to work 40-42 hours/week, 5 hours for lunchbreak (usually taken at my desk as there's nowhere to go) and a commute of 10-15 hours/week. So total working week of 55-60 hours/week.

Then when I get home I still have to do everything... cooking, cleaning, shopping, errands, sorting out problems, arranging things, paying bills ... just all that everyday stuff.

It's no wonder I'm taking time out. After 30 years of that I got bored of it... now I do nothing... it's great. I can thoroughly recommend less hours.

Most of my working life there was no paid holiday, paid holidays are a fairly new thing.

nearlyrich

I am trying to get out of the rat race totally by the time I am 55 and ideally I would like to do what I do either for less weeks per year or for less days per week, for the next 6 years leading up to this. The money is great but sometimes the need for money is less than the need for quality time to do things for myself.

tara747

mitchaa wrote: »

He could be at home doing squats I suppose

LOL!!! :rotfl:

BTW - LeeSouthEast, I didn't mean my post to sound patronising, I actually *do* feel sorry for you.

markharding557

I would like to do fewer hours for more money:D

tara747

markharding557 wrote: »

i would like to do fewer hours for more money:d

+1



>>>>>>>>>>>

LeeSouthEast

No need to feel sorry for me. I enjoy my job! It'd be perfect if it wasn't for the commute. My Big Plan had been to move closer to it, but then love happened and she lives just as far away but the other side of the county. So.. I've decided to just poke up with the commute and we'll move into a nice place her side of the world. It'll still be the same amount of travelling for me, just coming in from the opposite end !!

treliac

LeeSouthEast wrote: »

No need to feel sorry for me. I enjoy my job! It'd be perfect if it wasn't for the commute. My Big Plan had been to move closer to it, but then love happened and she lives just as far away but the other side of the county. So.. I've decided to just poke up with the commute and we'll move into a nice place her side of the world. It'll still be the same amount of travelling for me, just coming in from the opposite end !!

It's lovely to hear someone so refreshingly positive about their lot. Good luck to you both. And hope you have a fantastic holiday. Sounds like you deserve it. :cool:
....

MrsE_2

Where was the option for less hours & more money?

I do 36 hours pw & commute about 45 mins per day, (but I do a 9 day fortnight) so thats 6.75 hours of commuting & 72 hours of work a fortnight or 39.37 hours per week - all in.
I do a fair bit of travelling (M25 & are are good mates) but time I travel FOR work rather than TO work is allowable on my work time, so doesn't affect my hours.

My DH is a cab driver, he likes to get into London early before the commuters start leaving. He's often up a 4am or a bit later (I lie in till 5.30am), this morning he was up at 3am (but thats rare & it was fir a regular old customer). We both try & be home not too much after 5.30, but it rarely works like that for him & often doesn't for me.

michaels

I'd rather do fewer hours for less money but then I couldn't aspire to a nice house for my family all paid for asap - anything else - cars, holidays etc don't seem worth the hours worked...

...however with this attitude that I am working towards a goal rather than enjoying what I do means I tend to end up resenting the time away from my family which can not be healthy.

Contracted 37.5 hours and will do more if essential but try not to make it a habit, when younger and single was much happier to work until all expected was done - now I manage expectations.

Commute depends on project - my office is 15 mins walk (will be 15 mins drive after I move) but longest regular daily commute I have done is 1h45 mins each way to docklands by train/tube/dlr and car commute to LHR was average 60 mins but reguarly 2hrs (I love the M25)

Pobby

I dunno. In my early 50`s a friend of mine sold up and went to Spain. A couple of years younger than me. Oh I felt really jealous. However, on visits there they are not happy. Very little income from pensions and having to get work where they can. Here I am with less than 4 years from retirement and I am very much working on what I will do in retirement. Gone is the bloke who thought lazing around a Spanish pool was the way to go.

What I have been doing in the last 10 years is, on a free lance basis, getting customers for importers in niche electronic products. So busy 4 or 5 years ago that I had to employ my wife as my PA/ driver as the mobile never stopped. Due to various reasons, not the least the downturn, it is far to expensive to keep travelling around the countryside, staying in hotels so I tend to work from home now. It still provides me with a much reduced living but, boy, am I bored.

Now retirement looms in a few years and it scares the pants off me. I laughed at my Dad, railway engineer with a pension, going back to work after 6 weeks of reaching retirement. Now I fully understand it.

I read a lot, am a musician. I can paint and draw but the thought of not " working " has become really scary. So looking at various ( not risking a bunch of capital, been there and done that ) small businesses to do when the 65 mark hits. Oh and we do have various pensions. Not sure if this is the working ethic as I wouldn`t want to be getting up at 5 in the morning but as for totally quitting, hmmmmm...........