Second, you want to think about what economists call the “marginal value of money.” Let’s say your family would be better off in terms of income if you worked. You can calculate this in a dollar value, but that doesn’t necessarily tell you how much happier you’d be. You really want to think about how much your family would value that money in terms of what economists call “utility,” aka happiness. How different will your life be? What will you buy with this money? If it doesn’t make you happier, then it isn’t worth much, even if it is money.
