Summer Job Arbitrage
As school was ending last year, my lovely wife (who, again, married me for two and only two reasons) suggested somewhat strongly that it might be a good idea for our teenage son to get a job. He begrudgingly agreed – though I’m not convinced teenagers do anything unbegrudgingly – because, while working sounded unpleasant, making money did not. And I thought it was a good idea, too.
In reaching consensus, however, we all overlooked a key detail: my son didn’t yet have a driver’s license. Getting him to and from work quickly proved not only inconvenient, but challenging, and the value arbitrage of a private equity CIO taking time off to shuttle a junior salesperson to Play It Again Sports hasn’t exactly penciled out favorably.
Still, there is value beyond the spreadsheet. My son gained experience, perspective, and the ability to endure inconvenience (mostly mine). It’s also true that many good investments don’t look great when you model them – not just because they take a long time to pay off or because there’s inevitably a pebble that hits your windshield when you’re commuting to your son’s work on I-70 that causes damage that isn’t tax deductible to repair but causes damage roughly equal to his after-tax wages (I think trucks should be responsible for windshields), but because they can pay off in unanticipated ways. Finally, perhaps it’s the case that doing something worthwhile (and spending money because of experience and stories) is its own reward.
Man, I sound like a middle-aged dad.
– Tim
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