Clothes and accessories cost money — that much is obvious. You look at a pair of jeans and think, “They cost me 30 euros, and I’ve worn them three times at most.” The math seems simple.
What isn’t so obvious is how incomplete that math is.
I realized this only recently, after I resumed my piano practice.
At first glance, piano playing has nothing to do with clothes. And yet, it has everything to do with them. Playing the piano doesn’t cost me money; maintaining an ever-changing wardrobe does. But once I stopped meddling with my wardrobe and accepted that it was finished, I suddenly found myself with more of a currency we rarely track — until it’s too late.
Time.
With all the money I possess, I cannot go out and buy even a single second.
This line is attributed to Warren Buffett, reportedly spoken during a lecture attended by my niece while completing her MBA. Whether apocryphal or not, the point stands: time is finite, and we all spend it — consciously or not.
Sitting among my carefully curated (and semi-organized) wardrobe, I decided to calculate what my clothing habits were really costing me.
Daily:
- Internet and social media browsing: ~15 min
- Online research for items spotted while browsing: ~5 min
- Extra time choosing outfits due to wardrobe size: ~5 min
- Extra time putting away clothes: ~5 min
Total: 30 minutes per day
Weekly:
- Shopping in physical stores: ~1 h 30 min
- Rotating clothes between active and storage wardrobes: ~10 min
- Cleaning, pressing, and preparing new items: ~20 min
Total: ~2 hours per week
Every four months:
- Sorting clothes for donation, checking donation boxes, driving to drop-off points: ~4 hours
That adds up to:
- 182 hours (daily)
- 27 hours (weekly)
- 12 hours (donations)
Total: 221 hours per year — nearly 28 workdays.
More than my official annual holiday.
And this doesn’t include:
- anxiety over mistakenly donated items
- indecision about what to buy or keep
- uncertainty about whether I “look good enough”
- mental energy spent styling new pieces when I should be thinking about work or family
The list goes on.
What struck me most was this: I struggle to find 15 minutes a day to play the piano — something I genuinely value — yet I routinely spend 30 minutes unconsciously chasing clothes I’ve seen on others, researching where to buy them, and managing them once they enter my life.
Once acquired, these items don’t just occupy space in my wardrobe. They claim space in my day, in my attention, and in my thoughts — until donation finally tears us apart.
I don’t think Mr. Buffett would call this a sound investment.
And I no longer do either.
Have you had a similar aha moment with your wardrobe — or with another area of your life?
Share it in the comments. Let’s support each other on this difficult journey.