Money, that's what it's all about. Is this true?

Well it is certainly true that the amount of money you have can determine whether you have free time, or whether you have none.

And I would say that time is the prerequisite to many, many other important things.

In fact, given the kind of universe we live in, the kind of existence humans have, then surely how time is apportioned is an essential topic.

Money, then, can buy us time.

This is especially true in a market economy (though, of course, hunter-gatherers and farmers also have to invest time in making a living, so it is hardly unique to market economics; in the Soviet Union, too, life was very much dictated by the hours you worked, which is why Communism as it has actually existed in nation-states in the 20th century has been called by some, "State Capitalism").

For example, if you are a stay-at-home, work-from-home, Internet marketer, while you may save time not having to sit in a car or on a bus twice a day five days a week, or even shaving and getting dressed(!), and while you may be enthused by what you do, you still probably are at base motivated by money.

In other words, the question must be asked -- if you had unlimited money, would you do it?

Ultimately, in this context, for someone with unlimited means, there is a little word that applies to them that does not apply to everyone: that word is "choice."

Money gives you more choices. And this includes the choice to work, or not to work, ie. how to spend your time.

Choice, then, is an important aspect of life, and one that I feel is a commodity worth pursuing.

For example, where I live, although my home is actually quite nice, I have spent the last several months disrupted by a hostile neighbor (who has thankfully now moved out!).

Now, a person with unlimited money could simply say, OK, I'm going to move.

Now, first, moving is expensive. Secondly, one is limited in one's search for somewhere better by one's budget. Thirdly, if you are working fulltime there is the question of how to find the time (a) to look for a new place, and (b) to actually execute the move itself.

So, here money plays into several factors of the situation, specifically, time, and choice.

For this reason, no matter how many proverbs are out there about the evils of money, I have to wonder whether the inventors of such sayings were themselves rich, but simply green that they themselves didn't have much green...