Why Working Less Might Actually Be the Smarter Life Strategy

Most Americans think the default life plan is: get a full-time job, grind 40+ hours a week, maybe start a side hustle, hope for retirement someday. But here’s the brutal reality: time is the only resource you can’t get back.

Let’s look at the numbers:

• Average employee (all types): ~34.5 hours/week

• Full-time workers (official stats): ~40–41 hours/week

• Full-time salaried workers (self-reported): ~42–45 hours/week

• Entrepreneurs and small business owners: often 45–55+ hours/week, early-stage founders sometimes 60+

Add commuting, and even a “normal” job can consume 40–45 hours of your week. That’s 2,000–2,600 hours a year you’ll never get back.

Here’s the catch: more hours usually don’t buy you more happiness. Anxiety, stress, and burnout rise with unpredictable schedules, long hours, and high pressure, no matter your title. Hourly workers with low control report higher stress than salaried workers in secure, flexible roles—but long hours alone also take a mental toll for professionals.

So what’s the alternative?

Cut your expenses. Live closer to subsistence. Work part-time.

If you can comfortably live on less, you can keep your workweek around the average 34–35 hours. That buys back 5–15 hours per week compared to the “full-time reality” track. Over a year, that’s hundreds of hours of reclaimed life—time to walk, read, play music, or just be present with the people who matter.

Yes, it requires trade-offs: smaller margins, cultural friction, and confronting your own identity around success. But if your priority is time ownership and presence, this is the rare strategy that actually aligns with your values.

Instead of trading life for capital, trade some capital for life. It’s simpler, quieter, and for anyone willing to make it work, vastly underrated.