Jonathan Clements: Buying Time & Autonomy
on Thursday, March 8, 2018Jonathan Clements Money Quote saying money buys us things that often make us miserable, but also allows us to be autonomous and to save more time. Jonathan Clements said:
“First and foremost, money buys time and autonomy. Secondarily, it buys experiences. Last, and least, it buys stuff, and more often than not, the stuff we buy makes us miserable” — Jonathan Clements
In this quote, Jonathan Clements is ranking the different ways that money can be used or spent. He argues that most importantly, money provides “time and autonomy” – it allows one to replace earning income with leisure time, and gives independence over one’s schedule and lifestyle choices. Secondly, money can be spent on valuable “experiences” like travel or entertainment.
But least importantly, money is often wasted buying excessive “stuff”, which Clements says tends to not ultimately make people any happier in the long run. The key message is that using money to gain more free time and freedom of choice brings greater benefits to well-being than the temporary satisfaction of acquiring possessions.