What My Parents Never Told Me About Chores

If you work a white collar job in front of a computer like I have most of my career, you likely sit for most of the day.  Unless you’ve been under a rock, you’ve heard how sitting too much is bad for your health

That factoid isn’t even an argument.

One of the main reasons I semi-retired in my 40’s is to sit less and be active more.  Even when I was working full time I still made cycling, running, and climbing a priority in my life. 

I shoot for at least 10 hours of these activities a week or more, and usually make that mark.  To be honest I have no clue how I did it when I was working full time.

For the past year and a half I’ve only been working 20 hours a week at my W2 job, so I have way more time to get exercise in.  But what have I filled that newly liberated 20 hours a week with?

Mostly graphic design and blogging, two activities that still require me to be in front of a computer.

I have a makeshift stand-up desk setup at home, but if you’ve never tried a stand up desk my experience is that it only works for so long.  For me at least standing in front of a computer aggravates different body parts than sitting does and is still sub-optimal. 

So over the years the long hours of being a white-collar desk jockey have left me with stiff hip flexors and a mild case of sciatica.  No bueno. 

This leads me to chores…

 

Outsourcing

My mower from the 1980’s, still gets ‘er done.

Most of my friends pay to have their houses cleaned.  Many also pay to have their grass cut all summer and their leaves raked in the fall.  I think every one of my friends has a robot vacuum cleaner.  Vacuuming is for chumps and robots right?

I avoid all of these things however, and I have three main reasons.  The first is what I call “the aggregation of marginal conveniences”.  That link explains it so no need to go into too much detail here.  But basically it’s the slippery slope to lifestyle inflation, laziness, and complacency.

The second of course is the cost.  A cleaning service in my area is about $120.  Assuming they come once a month that’s $1440 a year. 

Where I live our lawns have to be cut once a week from April through October.  That’s $50 a week for about 28 weeks if you’re paying someone to do it.  That’s another $1400 annually.

Between those two services alone that’s $2,840 a year.  That $2,840 annually over just 10 years, assuming a 7% return in the market, is a $47,572 opportunity cost.  That’s enough to fund my lifestyle for more than a year.

Over 20 years it’s an eye-popping $135,567

That’s huge.

But there are good arguments for paying for these things, so before the “shaming police” come after me I’m acknowledging that.  My good buddy Doc G states it pretty clearly – he hates doing these things and feels the time he saves by paying for them is better spent doing other things.  Like making money at his numerous side hustles.

I’m not arguing with that point of view at all.  If cutting the grass takes an hour and a half and you can pay someone $50 to free up that time and put it to use working on your business, why not?  It’s a balancing act of time and money management.  I just choose to balance differently than others.

But that gets to my third and main reason for not outsourcing these activities.  Cleaning my house, cutting my grass, and vacuuming give me good opportunities to not sit.  Doing these things is a great break from my sedentary side hustles and gets me away from the computer, out of a chair, and on my feet.  More time moving, less time sitting, plain and simple. 

My parents should have told me that one day chores would be good for my health.

 

Sweet Spot

Standing, raking, moving. No computer needed.

I love working on my graphic design business.  It somehow keeps growing and becoming more profitable despite my marginal talents.  If I don’t purposely set limits I can easily find myself sitting in front of the computer doing designs for 5 or 6 hours at a time. 

It’s like a space-time warp.  Poof, holy crap, it’s 8 o’clock.  How’d that happen?

When I get up after a session like that my knees are creaky and my sciatica usually flares up a bit.  When I’m moving both of those things go away. 

Damn I sound old, and typing those last few sentences was a wee-bit depressing. 

But life goes on and I have a house to clean and a yard to tend to.  So I’ll stick to doing chores myself as long as they get me on my feet.

I actually love it that manual chores now serve a dual purpose in my life.  The chore gets done, and I feel better and less achy. 

That’s a high ROI for my time. 

How about you AF readers – do you outsource house cleaning, grass mowing, and other chores?  Do you also find yourself sitting too much, even after your workday is over?

Subscribe To New Posts Here!

Dave @ Accidental FIRE

I reached financial independence and semi-retired in my mid-40's through hard work, smart living, and investing. This blog chronicles my journey and explores many aspects of personal finance including the psychological and behavioral factors that drive our habits.

You may also like...

38 Responses

  1. xrayvsn says:

    I do my own yardwork mainly (mowing the lawn for about 2 acres) which takes me 90 min or so on my walk behind. It actually is a good way to decompress (put on a pair of headphones and listen to music while I mow) and gives me a sense of satisfaction when it is done that is far better than if I paid someone else to do it).

    I find doing things on your own (like minor bathroom repairs etc) gives you a sense of pride and also challenges you to keep you on your toes.

  2. growing up my best friend’s family burned wood for heat. whenever i stayed there his dad would order us “out to the wood pile to earn your breakfast” in a loud marine corps voice. this was an industrial wood pile with those 30 foot logs you see on large trucks that you moved around with heavy equipment. i avoided chainsaws at all costs with my low skill and fear but splitting wood was good honest work.

    we do our own stuff at home with no robots and as you know, i sometimes even troubleshoot our own household issues. even with all that i still sit too much.

    • Dave @ Accidental FIRE says:

      As Van Morrison says, “chop that wood, carry water”. I’d love to live the remote cabin life….

  3. We do our chores too. Mostly because I’m too cheap to pay someone to come do it.
    Although, some chores are quite relaxing. For me, that’s cooking. It doesn’t feel like a chore.
    On the other hand, mowing really sucks because I have allergy.

    • Katie Camel says:

      I find cooking relaxing too, but I also make it fun and sometimes productive by either playing music or podcasts.

      I don’t outsource chores. Why should I pay someone to clean my less-than-900-sq-ft house? Well, maybe I lied. I have condo association fees, so someone cleans and shovels for me. But I do my own deck gardening, etc. And I totally agree that these chores keep us active and less sedentary.

    • Dave @ Accidental FIRE says:

      Allergies suck and they’re a legit reason to avoid yardwork if you ask me

  4. I don’t outsource anything because I am FIRE and can’t afford it but I do find that I sit far too much doing photo editing and blogging/freelance writing work. Heck just reading blogs trying to keep up with all the stuff I love to read is too much sitting. As for chores, I have really dialed back on the level of “perfection” I used to seek because I realized that nobody cares about a perfectly clean house or manicured yard. I do just enough of what needs to be done and realize the rest was the same as money, just “keepin’ up with the Joneses”

  5. lifeoutsidethemaze says:

    when my lady and I were both working startups, we experimented paying for loads of services because stress was high and income was also high. After all if you burnout and have to quit you lose more money than what would be spent on a cleaning service. However, now that I am not working a job we’ve scaled back and I do take pleasure in doing some of those things. Ok now off to mow the lawn…

  6. I try to outsource as many of my chores as possible. I’m in a different stage of life in which my wife and I are still working demanding full time jobs during the time and taking care of our kids at night. We would like our weekend and free time to be as relaxing as possible.

    I think if outsourcing of chores is easily within your budget, then do it. I fine it to be a great return on my buck.

    • Dave @ Accidental FIRE says:

      I can’t argue with that. If you have literally no time and you have the money then it’s a good strategy

  7. Pete says:

    Used to pay for house cleaning and some lawn service because of health reasons for me. However, with help from the doctors, I was able to solve some of the health issues and then decided paying for this was silly. Plus, it felt good to be able to do the basics again.

  8. I spent 30 years as a Corporate Desk Jockey, and have always loved getting outside to do “real” work as a hobby. We’ve never outsourced housework, and we push ourselves to tackle bigger and bigger projects (eg I build a 2-level firepit using 25 railroad ties this past winter). It’s great for the body, and the mind. The fact that it saves money is pure bonus!

  9. EFI says:

    We went through a phase where we paid for a lot more under the theory that “we have more money than time.” It was true, but also just part of lifestyle inflation.

    Now, we do almost all of our own chores. Since I manage people for most of my day job, I get a lot of satisfaction out of thing I can just get done without depending on anyone else! I hadn’t really considered the getting up and moving aspect of it, but the physical part certainly can’t hurt.

    One of the biggest challenges for me as a new renter will be not having some of those home improvement projects to focus my mind on when I’m just tired of interacting with people!

    • Dave @ Accidental FIRE says:

      Great point about being in control of getting something done, I never thought of it that way

  10. James Sharp says:

    Until I started wearing a Fitbit, I had no idea what a good work out mowing the lawn was. Instead of a power mower, I got an old fashion push mower to make it an even better work out. I found similar exercise benefits from digging weeds, trimming hedges, planting, and just about every sort of yard-work. Living on a steep hill bumps up the heart rate even more.
    Financially, it’s a win win. Instead of paying for a yard service so I can have time to drive 20 miles round trip to the closest gym; I avoid the cost of both transportation and gym dues.
    Timewise it’s also a winner. I’ve committed myself to spending one hour a day in the yard, and avoid two hours driving and working out at the gym.

    • Dave @ Accidental FIRE says:

      Push mowers rock! Great for the environment and like you said an extra good workout. Just don’t let the grass get too high and then you’re stuck

  11. Phillip says:

    We both HATE cleaning bathrooms and mopping floors (entire house is hardwood). So a house cleaner is a no-brainer for us. I do the grass cutting after our service wanted to raise their rate to $75 since we didn’t want them coming every 2 weeks. I’ll take the 1.5 hrs to do it myself.

  12. Jean says:

    One thought about “outsourcing” household chores – you are providing an income stream for someone who needs it.

    • Dave @ Accidental FIRE says:

      That is true, but studies also show that folks in cleaning jobs are some of the most unhappy with their jobs in the entire country. Most would rather be making money another way.

  13. Mr. Tako says:

    Yes, 100% with you on this!! Doing chores is my opportunity to unplug from the computer and get outside. If I can get the kids to help me out, then even better — I get to spend more time with them too!

    Most people need *considerably* more physical activity anyway… why pay someone else to mow your lawn when you’re going to the gym? It’s craziness. There’s plenty of good opportunities to engage in physical activity!

    • Dave @ Accidental FIRE says:

      “Considerably” is an understatement. Let’s be honest – most folks need TONS more physical activity, but I’m guessing you were being facetious 🙂

  14. I actually really like cleaning. It’s meditative and satisfying for me. I live in an apt so no yard work, but when I lived in my l last place I did have a garden that I actualy liked working on. I can get into the flow state. Now if I worked a demanding job where I was working 60 hours a week (hopefully I never will) then I might have to consider cost vs time, but for now…

    • Dave @ Accidental FIRE says:

      Chores are very meditative. And I can get in the gardening flow state when weeding. I just mindlessly pick away

  15. DenverOutdoorsGal says:

    I’ve often contemplated the trade offs of not outsourcing the lawn service and monthly cleaning service ($223/month total). However, working full time towards FATFIRE comes with the freedom to do what you want and not do what you don’t want to. I absolutely detest the idea of cleaning house on weekends when I rather ride my bike, hike, paddle on the lake, or ski in the winters. I guess the freedom of choice is a key advantage of working towards FATFIRE. There’s nothing better that coming home after a long day at work to a clean and fresh smelling house and a nicely cut lawn.

    • Dave @ Accidental FIRE says:

      $223 a moth adds up, but as you said it’s a trade-off. There’s good arguments on both sides, but for me the movement component of chores is a big value add. And you’re making me jealous of the Colorado lifestyle. I’ve been every year for 12 years now, usually 2 trips a year. This year I have yet to get out there. We’ll see 🙂

      • DenverOutdoorsGal says:

        Hey Dave, since you like the movement component of chores and Colorado….hmmmm???? Free lodging in exchange for lawn mowing and house cleaning and you get movement as a bonus. Lol!

  16. zach says:

    it’s one of the reasons I like teaching, 3-4.5 hours a day on my feet in the classroom. Keeps me from being too sedentary.

    • Dave @ Accidental FIRE says:

      Yes! I taught full time for e awhile and as an adjunct professor for 17 years, it’s a great job to keep you on your feet.

Drop Me A Comment - What's On Your Mind?