People who spout off about how they don’t have a TV always remind me of The Onion’s “Area Man Constantly Mentioning He Doesn’t Own A Television.”
But the #1 reason people have for not doing what they want to do is time. The refrain: “There just aren’t enough hours in the day.” And yet these same people manage to veg out in front of the TV (the average person now watches 4.5 hours of TV a day).
“How Dumping TV Allowed Me to Quit My Job, Create an Online Business and Fund My Retirement Account” gives the actual financial costs of watching TV:
It’s amazing the amount you can accomplish when you find an extra 3,285 hours to work on something you enjoy doing rather than vegging in front of the TV. Those hours helped us create a small network of websites and blogs which allowed both of us to quit our jobs and work on them full time a couple of years ago…
To put it into perspective, if you watch an average of 31.5 hours of TV each week (which the average person in the US does) and you value your time at minimum wage of $5.85 an hour, you are spending nearly $800 a month ($798.53) to watch TV. That comes to nearly $10,000 ($9582.30) a year. I would imagine that most people reading this value their time well above minimum wage, so the cost is likely several times that number. When you look at it from that perspective, watching TV is an extremely expensive and financial draining habit to have.
Seeing the costs broken down like that really shines a light on the problem. Life’s about priorities. If there’s something you want to be doing, ask yourself how much your TV viewing is getting in the way.
Choose your tube
The article above also offers some good tips on how to get your TV watching down. Something that’s worked great for me: I moved recently and didn’t get cable at my new place. My viewing is now limited to things I choose to watch on Hulu, Netflix, and YouTube.
The choosing is the key there. It means I have to actively pick things to watch instead of just flipping through whatever’s on. As a result, I watch way less TV overall. No more SportsCenter highlights, no more local news, no more American Idol. Before, I’d get swallowed up in any/all of those and realize hours had just slipped away. That’s no longer an issue.
Finding more hours
While I’m on the subject, another great way to deposit some hours in your free time bank: Don’t commute. Obviously it’s not an option for everyone. But if there’s a way you can work from home, even if it’s just a day or two a week, think of the extra time you’ll have that you usually spend in traffic, on the train, etc.
An hour here, an hour there. It starts to add up. Then you can use that time to build something on the side. A few hours a week on a project will tell you if you’re onto something. You’ll know if you love doing it. You’ll know if others care at all. Then you can decide if it’s worth throwing more hours at or if it was just a fun thing to try. Either way, you didn’t have to quit your job or do anything too risky.
Tim
on 27 Apr 09What most people need when building a side business is consecutive hours … especially in programming.
30 minutes here and 1 hour there, in the programming word won’t get you much because of the huge time lag for developers when they have to context switch.
Drawing, painting, writing, etc might be different (I personally don’t know) ... but for programmers, 30 minutes doesn’t get you much.
We need consecutive free time hours.
Robin Hood
on 27 Apr 09Kill two birds by watching Sportscenter highlights at the gym.
Martin Ringlein
on 27 Apr 09What is more of a time suck, watching TV or reading blogs? Think about if you just stop relaxing and having fun all together; the time you would save.
Really, stop watching TV and in return “make a small network of websites and blogs”? That seems productive to you? Perhaps your priorities are just not in-line with the typical American.
How about we all stop watching TV, leaving pointless comments (like this one; oh the irony!) on blogs, making websites and making more blogs and go outside and spend time with our families. Maybe go outside and clean up the community or help our fellow man? But I guess that would be a whole different set of priorities.
To each his own. Some spend too much time watching TV and some spend too much time making websites and blogs—I’d rather just complain on the internet all day.
jb
on 27 Apr 09I just recently (maybe a month ago) stopped watching TV almost entirely. Its amazing how addicting it is to just sit there with your brain turned off. I now make a concious decision not to turn the TV on just because I am home and can.
Alejandro Moreno
on 27 Apr 09You’re right about “don’t commute” not being for everyone:
My commute costs me 70 minutes each day, round-trip, and $75 a month for the pass. And I just veg out. In theory I could get two bursts of 15-20 minutes of work on a laptop, but I think I would barely have time to get my bearings before having to snap it down.
Riding my bike, the same as above, 70 minutes per day, with no extra cost in money. Good exercise.
Driving? 50 minutes + $18 dollars per day of parking. Obviously, no chance of getting anything else done.
briano
on 27 Apr 09i really liked this video from clay shirky as it relates to your end goal, matt: http://www.clusterflock.org/2008/04/where-do-people-find-the-time.html (posted a year ago to the the day…cue twilight zone music…)
KC
on 27 Apr 09Yeah, and (at minimum wage) you’re also losing about $17k a year sleeping.
Paul Leader
on 27 Apr 09@Martin Ringlein
I agree with your sentiment, there is nothing intrinsically wrong with TV and people who regard it as some kind of evil influence. Hell, there are some shows that I love to watch and it’s great to just chill out. I also think people who tell you to read a book instead are just being cultural snobs most of the time.
But for me personally, I often find I spend hours watching stuff that in hindsight was rubbish just because it was on at the time, and I just think I could have done something far more satisfying in that time.
I think that’s why so many people end up watching less TV when they get a DVR, it becomes a conscious act rather than a passive “it’s on so I’ll watch it” kind of thing.
Oh, and I think if something “allowed both of us to quit our jobs and work on them full time” then whatever it was, you could class that as productive :o)
Paul
Jason Zimdars
on 27 Apr 09“Don’t commute.”
That’s a big one for me. I try to work from home once a week and it’s always my favorite day of work, not to mention most productive.
I get up at the same time as if I was going to the office, but instead of getting in the car, packing a lunch, etc. I just start working. So I get going right away, which lets me finish earlier in the day. And since I don’t have to drive home, I “get home” even earlier still. It leaves a lot of time left i the day for not working.
That said, I find that when I work from home that I typically work an hour or two longer than at the office. I attribute this to actually getting in “the zone” and getting focused and immersed on what I’m working on. The time flies and tend to keep going until I’m finished, instead of until I’m interrupted.
And the interruptions are fewer at home. First of all, there are no meetings to take away working time, and carve your day into useless pieces. But also it seems like even IM interruptions are fewer at home. Coworkers seem to get that when you’re working from home you’re trying to focus – and they leave you alone.
I think many of us can benefit from being able to work outside the office. I’d highly recommend asking your boss to let you try it one day a week, or maybe just a few days a month to start off.
Tarus
on 27 Apr 09Okay, granted, a lot of people have a TV watching problem, but I really don’t think it is a big as everyone makes it out to be. You might as well say “People waste 8 hours a day sleeping when they could be working”.
I run my own company and I run a horse farm. I spend about 12 hours a day doing productive work and that’s about all I can do.
If I choose to spend the remaining 4 hours eating, bathing and “vegging” out in front of the TV (assuming 8 for sleep) then so be it. I wouldn’t get anything else done and it helps me re-groove my brain.
dan
on 27 Apr 09I hate tv. Too many commercials. I like to get my tv shows through netflix. No commercials.
Martijn Lafeber
on 27 Apr 09Agree for 100% on the tv-argument. I don’t have one myself and I don’t miss it.
The commute however; I like the 20 minute bike ride to and from the train station. The 20 minute train ride is spent working or reading. Also love it.
Ben S.
on 27 Apr 09I am the referenced “Area Man”. I tout not watching TV because I dropped cable 8 years ago and because of the boredom started up an online business. It’s fed my family for 8 years now.
It’s amazing how much of a time suck TV can be…just invest 1/2 of the time you spend watching it now and I can guarantee you’ll be better off.
Sam Barnum
on 27 Apr 09I agree with the sentiment, but find assigning a monetary value to every hour of the day distressing. Most of us work too damn much. People should do more things that they enjoy. How much is it costing me to play the piano an hour a day? How much potential income have I squandered playing chess? Should I be working a second job instead?
That said, if you enjoy watching a lot of tv, there are probably some more enriching and productive hobbies you could look into. Like punching yourself repeatedly in the balls.
scotts
on 27 Apr 09Sorry, but everyone still needs leisure time. For many it’s TV… you can’t just work, work, work your entire day every day.
Happy
on 27 Apr 09Here’s some other extremely expensive and financial draining habits I have.
- watching my kids play soccer - going out with my wife - shooting hoops - flying RC airplanes - going to movies - going to baseball games - learning new card tricks - visiting my parents - cleaning the house - going to church - reading svn - working out - sleeping - camping - hiking
When people measure activities based on opportunity costs against billable hours, I skip right over such discussions lest I be paralyzed from ever doing anything else but working. TV is just like any other time-consuming decision: Use your time in ways that help you create and enjoy the life you want, but don’t get over concerned with opportunity costs of doing so.
Chuck
on 27 Apr 09Do most people really spend that much time in front of the TV, or just people willing to waste their time taking a lame poll about TV?
Even on a “heavy” TV-watching week for me, I’ll watch about 10 hours for the entire week. And that’s without exercising any kind of restraint. I wonder where the extra 21.5 hours come from for the average person? Normally, I actually watch more like 3–4 hours a week. And those hours are mostly during meals, so counting them as “TV time” seems a bit specious.
I don’t know, the numbers just sound off to me. Are my viewing habits really that far off from most people’s?
ML
on 27 Apr 09TV is just like any other time-consuming decision
Is it though? I feel like TV is a passive, mind numbing, almost drug-like activity. It’s mildly pleasurable at the time since you get to turn your brain off, but afterwards ya just feel like ya wasted those hours. I would never compare it to spending time with loved ones, sleeping, exercising, or things that I think are truly valuable.
It’s a cliché but I think it has weight: When you’re on your deathbed, are you really going to wish that you spent more time watching television? Personally speaking, I spend enough of my life looking at pixels on a screen already. I’d rather spend my time doing something else. It doesn’t have to be work or business-related. Just something that you’ll be able to look back on later and say, “Yeah, that was worth that time.”
Morley
on 27 Apr 09If you think it was a waste of time after you watched TV, you’re watching the wrong TV. Like everything else in the world, TV follows the 80/20 rule (though it admittedly feels like a 95/5 rule).
I think most people can fix their TV habits by upping their standards. Watching The Wire never feels like a waste of time. Just like watching The Dark Knight should never feel like a waste of time.
Peter
on 27 Apr 09Moved, didn’t have cable and stopped watching a lot of tv. Never bought cable since. All I get is two national tv channels and for me that’s the best combo. I still need some tv just to relax after a frantic day. I watch 30 minutes of local news and maybe an hour more if something interesting is on, movie now and then.
I also quit one day of work, so I’m doing four day work week and spending free time taking care of myself and my future business.
Just do what feels right to you.
Tom G.
on 27 Apr 09Hmm.. Work all day and then go home and work some more. I find I am more productive if I have some downtime and rest.
I watch about 6 to 10 hours a week at most, but I like it and I’m not giving it up. Its something my wife and I have in common.
I would like to suggest that clock hours are not always the whole story. Staying focussed and with high intensity during a reasonable work day is important to productivity.
Happy
on 27 Apr 09ML: okay, you’re right. TV time is not created equal. TV is really one of the last things I want to spend time on. We have TV, basic cable at $16/mo seems reasonable. My point regarding time saved not watching was meant to be just as you said: It doesn’t have to be work or business-related.
When the post topic and the referred blog topic is about financial impact, it sounds like an argument that time saved not watching tv should be work or business-related and/or that decisions on how to spend time should be work or business related. I only meant to clarify, as you did in your last comment, that they need not be.
Don Schenck
on 27 Apr 09Went nine years without a TV. Had “that” conversation, the one where I honestly didn’t know who Tom Cruise was. Yeah, that was me.
Read Jerry Mander’s book.
When you don’t have a TV, you CANNOT imagine having the time to watch one. Seriously. I remember saying to people, “How do you find the time to watch TV?”. And not in a condescending way … I was genuinely puzzled.
Andy Kant
on 27 Apr 09Looking at your spare time as “money lost” is just going to turn you into a robot. I probably spend about 10-15 hours watching DVR/movies each week. It might be “passive,” but it is helpful for me to clear my mind. I would admit that I probably use up too much of my free time playing video games though (some of the games on Xbox Live Arcade are entirely too addictive ;).
Scott Kurland
on 27 Apr 09I like the effort and recovery model. After a couple of hours of lifting with my friends on a Sunday morning, I’m capable of eating, sleeping, and/or watching TV; math coprocessor in my head is one of the first things heavy effort shuts down, to the extent that I have trouble adding plate weights to get poundages. The rest of the week basic arithmetic is easy, honest.
And really, I can be an intelligent creative focused productive person for maybe five hours a day.
Chuck
on 27 Apr 09Hours before she died, a woman I knew asked a friend, “What do you value in life?” He couldn’t come up with an answer on the spot, so she scolded him, “If you don’t know what you value, how will you have time to pursue it?” But her answers to the question weren’t about making money or lofty goals or anything like that. Her list included things like Harry Potter and the proper use of the English language. That’s what really made her happy.
I think the takeaway here isn’t “Don’t watch TV,” but to ask yourself whether you really value the TV you’re watching. Maybe we’re neglecting something important to us because the TV is more convenient. It’s definitely worth examining.
But TV doesn’t have to be “shut off your brain” time. I think there is value to the arts. A good TV show can be just as rewarding as, say, a book or painting or song. My favorite show of all time is a 13-episode Japanese cartoon series called “Haibane Renmei”, and one of the big things I like about it is that it inspires me to rethink things every time I watch it. It’s very beautiful and thought-provoking. When I’m on my deathbed, I might actually want to watch that show one last time. It’s something I value.
Geoff
on 27 Apr 09“TV is just like any other time-consuming decision”
To loosely quote Richard Louv, “TV steals time, nature amplifies it.”
Brade
on 27 Apr 09Interesting topic, and I’m loving Martin’s comment. For me, I find that I enjoy leisure time in the evenings after work. There are times I’ve tried doing side projects during these times (and still do every so often), but honestly my head begins to hurt and I just want to relax. Of course there are things I’d like to do, but we should ask ourselves: will our side projects really make the world a better place (an idea that Martin and others touched on)? If it’s just a matter of earning more money, start looking for another day job that will treat you better. But life’s not worth living without an ample dose of leisure time (whether you use it to watch TV or not seems immaterial)...
Mike or Something
on 27 Apr 09How will I know if Jack saves the world or not?
Charlie Triplett
on 27 Apr 09I’m going on 9 years without a TV— I can’t see how people have time for it either. It just… doesn’t make sense.
It destroys creativity. There are better ways to unwind that don’t require 30+ hours a week. go for a walk grow something talk to your wife, husband, child, parents (okay, maybe not parents) listen to some good music (Metallica works for me)I’m not militant about it; I can watch hours of the Discovery channel, but c’mon. It doesn’t take 31 hours a week to unwind unless you’re like, a New York EMT.
Eric
on 27 Apr 09What’s with all the TV haters? I know a few IT guys who could benefit from some TV watching to learn how to interact with others better.
Regardless of that, the points mentioned of using DVRs and people upping their standards (ie, The Wire) make TV watching an engaging, educational, cultural-enhancing, entertaining activity. As with anything, moderation of course.
Jamis Charles
on 27 Apr 09@Tim,
I agree with you that there is a lag if you just sit down and start. Having a limited amount of time every day for my side projects has forced me to be more productive. I keep a notebook and pre-plan my code or design during my off hours. That way when I finally have time to sit down, I can maximize my time and am much more productive and successful because I’ve already planned out the problems.
Jason Falk
on 27 Apr 09Well, as someone who has not had my own TV my entire adult life (I am 34 now), I have recently decided to get one. I am passionate about my own projects, I workout and I find quality time for friends and family. But, as a single guy who lives alone, there are times I just want to relax and check-out for a bit. Right now that usually entails going out to eat or have drinks which, in Seattle, adds up to a lot of cash.
I suppose I could also add up the time I spend eating and drinking at restaurants and bars and factor in some kind of performance loss for the next day from hangover or less sleep. That said, I have always had good self-control with TV and I can watch a few hours and be done with it. I figure with one in the house, I can pacify a few hours of evening till it is time to go to sleep and be more rested the next day with cash still in my wallet.
As much as we love what we do, we still need to just rest and relax now and then, and, for the buck, it is hard to beat TV.
When I say TV I am referring to the box itself not the often poor content that comes on it. I do try to stick with higher quality content like movies, premium shows and educational content. For me at least, I would agree that shows like American Idol seem like a undeniable waste of time.Hugene
on 27 Apr 09What’s a TV?
Seriously, I thought everyone had stopped watching TV. And I can not believe the 31.5 hours figure, it simply insane. That means that if you get home from work at 6 (assuming you have a laid back job and not much commute), then you must watch TV straight until 10:30PM, with no cooking/eating/chilling in between. Then, if you go to bed by 12:00 (too late for most people) that leaves 1:30 to chill with kids/wife and cook and clean.
This statistic is BS, probably pushed by TV media lobby to support their industry.
Haven’t had TV in 4 years, haven’t watched for close to 8. Not miss it a single bit, except maybe for the local news.
But we need a compromise too, just working on projects during the TV-free time is also a waste. How about some books, some sport, some coffee, some Baladur’s Gate.
Jack Bauer
on 27 Apr 09Stick to what you know Matt. Don’t make me kill you.
Ted Jablonski
on 27 Apr 09TV is characterized as a “habit” rather than a hobby? Storytelling has been part of human civilization for millenia, when did it become a vice?
Derek Ashauer
on 27 Apr 09The people that do spend too much time in front of a TV aren’t the ones that are concerned about how much their time is worth. I also find it ironic that a lot of people work really hard to save some money to buy a nice, huge TV to sit in front of and waste their time.
The numbers are definitely inflated for this data. For example, if you looked at how long a TV was on in our house, it would be 6-8 hours a day. We have two parrots and we leave the TV on because they like laughing along to sitcoms while we are working upstairs.
lbb
on 27 Apr 09“What’s with all the TV haters? I know a few IT guys who could benefit from some TV watching to learn how to interact with others better.”
I think you just broke my irony meter with the idea that someone can learn to interact with others from television. I guess it’s all relative, though, heh.
We could go back and forth forever on whether watching television (or surfing the net) is a good use of time - not going there. I will say, though, that a lot of people who complain about not having enough time to [fill in the blank] seem to spend a great many of their waking hours engaged in a kind of TV-watching - or net-surfing—that won’t leave them in a better place, even in their own estimation. It’s fun to do, but looking back over a year of spending your leisure time like that, you’re not going to find them claiming that it was highly worthwhile. So leave television out of it, if the use of the t-word annoys you. The real question for the “got no time” people is, how are you spending your time now? What choices are you exercising now?
Marcos Toledo
on 27 Apr 09I dont watch tv. With that out of the way, I don’t agree with those arguments either.
To me, like people have said before, comparing entertainment time with productive time is a mistake. Its like saying: “look at the cost of spending the time with your loved ones”, to quote one of the other activities suggested to replace tv watching.
Therefore, I think that’s the wrong question. Comparing time you spend with entertainment and time you spend productively is comparing apples to oranges.
Now, for the other argument that ‘tv is passive, for people vegging as brainless zombies’: well, yea, it probably is, but its an entertainment choice. Assuming your choices are better than the guy next door is like saying classical music is superior to hip hop, or that soccer is better than basketball. Saying that everyone should spend their times with their family instead of watching tv is a big generalization: you don’t know what is he watching (could be a breakthrough classic like many movies that exist today), and his family could be a bunch of abusers. We can’t know.
So, to me, assuming you can tell people what is better for their own entertainment is not only pretentious, but wrong.
But, to make it lighter, the suggestion is valuable: if you think you watch a lot of tv, try to replace tv with other entertainment options. Chances are you’ll find some pretty good alternatives.
And try to listen to some classical music anytime too.
Nick
on 27 Apr 09I cancelled my satellite TV subscription at the beginning of the year. Its freed up a whole lot of time for family – the kind of time where we talk to each other instead of sitting on the couch next to each other staring at a screen.
And when we really want to watch something, we watch a DVD from our growing collection of good movies.
Adi
on 27 Apr 09I dumped tv more than 4 years ago, in high school. It was the best and smartest decision I’ve ever made. It freed me of an average of 1000 hours of bad programming each year.
Jay
on 27 Apr 09We recently had our primary TV go down and we were not in a hurry to get it repaired. It was actually kind of nice to NOT have it around and not have the option of watching it. We played board games, stayed outside later, worked a little more and did things that didn’t involve sitting and staring numbly at a screen.
We ended up getting the TV fixed and still do watch some and play some video games, but we have learned from the few weeks away from it that there is plenty more to do that can be more enjoyable and it’s all about moderation with the TV usage.
MichalT
on 27 Apr 09OMG if I worked 24/7 I would be a billionaire.
I watch TV via torrents, mostly stuff like Myth Busters and a few series. I think it’s a great source of entertainment. I’m sorry for wasting my leasure time on the stuff you’re not interested in.
MichalT
on 27 Apr 09I think this comes down to how you watch TV. Just get a friggin Tivo or a torrent client that supports RSS feeds.
Name
on 27 Apr 09What if I watch recorded shows while eating for two hours?
Nicole
on 27 Apr 09“Think about if you just stop relaxing and having fun all together; the time you would save.” – Martin Ringlein
Well, put, Martin. I too object to the idea that I need to be productive every moment of the day. Perhaps there are people who are trying to accomplish side projects that are looking for more productive hours and should look at their TV watching habits. However, given my schedule, I’m looking for the opposite. I’d actually like to find more downtime in my schedule.
I also don’t see a problem with using the TV as my “downtime” companion. Brain shut off time each evening is essential to being excellent at my day job. I find TV to be the best brain shut off. Otherwise, I would what? Read a magazine? Also not so productive by your definition.
Anonymous
on 27 Apr 09“Is it though? I feel like TV is a passive, mind numbing, almost drug-like activity.”
Well, I feel like you’re full of yourself. It’s a freaking form of entertainment, and is no more “passive” than reading a book or watching birds.
You know, there was a time when people observed fiction-reading in the same manner that you see TV-watching.
- A guy who only really watches sports on TV
Dan Lewis
on 28 Apr 09Top Gear, Six Feet Under, Mythbusters, Buffy, Austin City Limits, The Simpsons. That’s my list.
My advice is to buy the DVDs and do it in batch mode. In 250 plus episodes of Buffy/Angel, I never saw an ad. You can also wait till a show is over and has acquired the mantle of greatness (how you hurt me Heroes).
Live TV is another kettle of fish, though.
Yayteevee
on 28 Apr 09What the hell do you non-teevee watchers talk about with your friends?
My friendships almost all rely on a up-to-date knowledge of pop culture media for my demographic. And that media, in turn, relies on a good knowledge of internet culture, current events, and general news.
If you haven’t watched episodes of South Park, Family Guy, the Simpsons, some Daily Show or Colbert Report, The Office, and Saturday Night Live especially the digital shorts, then you will most certainly be a most boring person to interact with.
Also… do you like fishsticks?
Rob
on 28 Apr 09AMEN!
Ive been involved in the web for a while. Hung with Zuckerberg at the FB in palo alto before things got crazy, went to Matts party at his apartment for a WP release, at Arringtons party 2 and 3. But never did anything all that great or had anything take off. Then I moved into a one bed/one bath house and only had a desk and a bed. No couch, no tv, and no big comfy chair.
While holding down a 50 hour/week job with a 25 minute commute I started doing new things. I took a clothing boutique from 10k to 80k/month in sales within 4 months from good web practices (many learned off SvN). A couple months later took a 2 week vacation in Europe (from the money I earned) and realized I wasnt working hard enough cause I wanted to vacation more and do cooler things. Time to swing for a home run.
Came back and started a new site. Site traffic has doubled every month, my twitter account is growing crazy, & most importantly made big connections from people wanting to be part of what I was doing. All while working full time. I did quit my main job recently since things have been going so well. Zero plans to buy a TV and only plan on working harder.
What the hell do you non-teevee watchers talk about with your friends? If your friendships revolve around TV/celeb gossip then you need to find more interesting friends and improve yourself.
My social life has sucked but oh well. Making 50gs/year in LA isn’t much so I could only do so much. My happiness has gone up since I am more intrigued with the potential of stuff im working on.
I do watch top gear, lost, office. etc. But almost always while working. It does take away from being immersed, but its an easy sacrifice for putting out better work.
Michael Moncur
on 28 Apr 09But the #1 reason people have for not doing what they want to do is time.
And that reason is bullshit. Everyone gets the same 24 hours a day.
The real #1 reason is lack of focus, or lack of motivation, or lack of attention or inspiration.
Don’t blame the TV just because it’s sitting there when someone decides to be unproductive. Blame the decision.
HubrisSonic
on 28 Apr 09I live in Japan and only watch an occasional Jon Stewart, but a friend of mine from France mentioned that if you get any two Americans together they will start to talk of TV in less than 5 minutes. And he is right, it is true, I see it all the time when we travel back to the U.S.
MT Heart
on 28 Apr 09Watching less TV also has the added benefit of being less misinformed about the political landscape.
coskunlar vinc
on 28 Apr 09So, to me, assuming you can tell people what is better for their own entertainment is not only pretentious, but wrong.
Yardboy
on 28 Apr 09I doubt many at 37s are only making minimum wage, but for those who are, it better be more than $5.85/hr.
http://www.dol.gov/esa/whd/flsa/
Danyelon
on 28 Apr 09Uooou !!! U$ 5.85/hr !!!!!
That is a Salary of U$ 1.170 / month !!!
Twice my salary working in Hewlett Packard !
Oh.. I´m living in Argentina …
Ouch!
:(
Corinne
on 29 Apr 09If TV isn’t adding anything to your life, then go for it. Stop watching TV and reclaim your wasted hours.
But if it adds value for you, whether as recharge time or because of the cultural relevance and mutual points of interest TV generates, then there’s no reason to stop.
And as a personal plea, don’t withhold it from your children. Teach them that it’s not everything, sure, but when their peers are having entire conversations in TV quotes they’ll definitely have a social disadvantage! They can make their own choice whether to do without later.
Rob Cameron
on 29 Apr 09Damn, these are some of the most constructive anti-post comments I’ve seen in a while!
I never figured out why watching TV is any different than any other activity where you sit and listen only. Going to a lecture (while it is educational) is still just sitting there, watching something. How is that different than watching Mythbusters (which is educational AND entertaining)? Is going to the theater “better” than watching Lost? They’re both a non-educational, one-way experience of some story that probably has no relevance in your day-to-day existence. What’s the problem?
Remember the old addage: on their death bed, no one ever said “I wish I’d spent more time at the office” (except for Mr. Burns). They lament not having enough time to do whatever they want—and if they choose to spend that time watching TV, what’s wrong with that?
Tyler Hayes
on 29 Apr 09I agree with Martin. You should also write a post called “How much is sitting on the Internet costing you?”
Rob
on 30 Apr 09TV is just like everything else – there’s good stuff and there’s bad stuff. There is PLENTY of REALLY GOOD, educational, fun programming on television. So when I run across those “I threw out my TV”, type of people – I think: “How ignorant.”. I’ve learned sooo much from quality documentaries, howto whos, mybusters, how it’s made, Brink, etc, etc…
Don’t throw the baby out with the bathwater!
Elisha
on 01 May 09There are only 24 hours each year of truly valuable television viewing… any time spent with Jack Bauer is time well spent!!
Ashley
on 03 May 09Watching TV (or playing games) makes my working time more productive. So while I could work far more hours, I wouldn’t necessarily get more done.
This discussion is closed.