What is considered a waste of time can be different for everyone. For example, some people might consider watching TV a waste of time, while others might see it as a way to relax after a long day. The same goes for hobbies or hanging out with friends and family. For some, these activities may seem like a waste of time, but in reality, they are not. The time spent on these activities can be seen as an investment in oneself. So don't feel guilty about enjoying your free time – it's not wasted.

What is considered wasted time is subjective

You probably heard someone say you are wasting your time if they see you doing what is considered unproductive in the eyes of others. Things like watching a show on TV or streaming it on a computer or cell phone, doing your hobbies or passions, browsing social media posts and websites, and any other activity that doesn't equate to producing money can be prone to criticism from others.

Time is a valuable resource; most of us already know this. Unfortunately, it's nonrenewable, and we only have a fixed number of hours daily. We can only make the most out of it; to some, time is money. It's no wonder many people want to spend a lot of their time doing something that can let them earn money or anything beneficial, such as doing work and fulfilling daily obligations. Anything outside of work and responsibilities, especially activities you can do in your free time, can be considered a waste of time if you are not going to earn any money from them. It can reach the point where anything you do must have some financial result that you can gain from it in the end, even things that you enjoy, such as your hobbies and passions. However, the truth is that no uniform definition describes what things are considered a waste of time. It entirely depends on how one views their usage of time.

How you look at the time will dictate whether it is a waste to do something.

Time can be treated like any other thing, whether valuable or not, depending on how it influences your life. For example, if you are goal-oriented, every moment you spend will be valuable if you want to achieve your goals, especially if you embrace the idea that your time here on this planet is limited and want to achieve as much as possible. On the other hand, someone who is more carefree may see time differently and place value on those moments when they can do something fun and entertain instead of spending all the time doing something productive.

Our goals, interests, and values play a part in dictating whether the time we spend on something is a waste or a valuable use of time. For example, we will most likely spend a lot of our time doing things that matter the most to us; therefore, all of these will be considered valuable. On the other hand, any time spent on activities that don't interest us that much can get regarded as to be wasted time. Each of us has different goals and interests, so what is considered a waste of time for someone will not be the case for another. To a person who values "me" time and the importance of taking breaks and rest periods, doing things like reading a book, watching a funny video, or playing a game while taking a break is not wasted. For somebody who doesn't know how to take a break, any leisurely activity that doesn't produce money is considered a waste of time. A person's perspective and beliefs will change how valuable time spent doing a particular activity is.

How to ease yourself into not thinking you are wasting time

Several things can help ease your mind into not thinking you are wasting your time. First, you don't have to feel guilty whenever you do something you believe will not benefit you financially or help you grow. What's important is that you gain something from any activity, even if it isn't money or anything related to personal growth. It can be as simple as deriving happiness from any activity that you do. Experiencing joy is just as crucial as gaining money and achieving personal growth. We need to do things that can help break the ice and busyness of daily life. So you can stop feeling guilty whenever you do something as long as you feel happy doing it. Being happy contributes to positive mental health, so you gain something even from activities that seem trivial to others. This is why wasted time is subjective because we may never know how valuable and essential an activity or something is to another person.

One factor that can make us think we are wasting time is if we equate time with money, that everything we do must eventually contribute to something that will help us earn some wealth. This mindset can make it look like anything else you do that won't let you earn money would be a waste of time. To change this mindset, it's excellent to put your focus elsewhere aside from money, such as having the ability to spend time on things you enjoy or other things that matter to you, like your family and friends. We don't have to be constantly busy and think like time is running out. We also need to take some time off and appreciate the other things the world has to offer aside from gaining wealth. What's always essential is that we enjoy what we are doing aside from gaining some benefit from what we do. Time only becomes wasted if we spend time or long hours doing something and don't feel happy doing it or we don't benefit from it, such as mindlessly scrolling through social media websites only to end up feeling stressed and irritated from the posts that we see. It's up to us how we want to value our time and choose where to spend it.