<prompt> Human: Disclaimer: Im a huge fan of PF, and a long-time lurker. I absolutely believe in the importance of budgeting, and track my expenses carefully. That said, I sometimes feel that this subreddit focuses too much on cutting expenses vs. growing your revenue and yes, I fully acknowledge that cutting an expense is a guaranteed returnInvesting in myself by taking courses, reading books, and working extensively on side projects has improved my financial situation far more than budgeting. A bit of background: I graduated college about 5 years ago with a degree in comp sci, and have been living in a high cost area since then. My starting salary out of college 60k at a small firm. Over the next five years I spent a great deal of my free time taking online courses, working on several significant side projects, and reading extensively. Because of that investment along with a significant amount of luck a friendly labor market Ive increased my salary 2.5x to the 150,000 range. My friend who collaborated with me on side projects has seen an equivalent increase in salary over an even shorter period of time. Its also worth noting that now is literally the best time in human history to learn new skills. Companies like Udacity offer free courses in technology from the leading academics practitioners on the planet. Websites like meetup.com allow you to find existing groups of people practicing almost any skill from real estate to the culinary arts Your local library and even occasionally Amazon offer free digital books on every topic imaginable LinkedIn has made it trivially easy to find mentors people achieving success in your relevant fieldWhy is learning new skills and improving yourself so important beyond the obvious? A few relevant points: According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, the average worker currently holds ten different jobs before age forty, and this number is projected to grow. Forrester Research predicts that todays youngest workers will hold twelve to fifteen jobs in their lifetime. This means you will have at least 10 interviews by the time your 40, and each one will require you to demonstrate your value. More importantly, each one is an opportunity to increase your revenue. There is a great article here Forbes on the impact of switching jobs on lifetime earnings. Bottom line, most of your large salary increases will likely come when you switch companies. Its important to be able to demonstrate what youve done outside of work to increase your value. There are a near record number of job openings in the U.S. today CNN! Companies are desperate for people with analytical and technical skills. These skills can be acquired for free online! The amount of free time you have decreases as you age assuming like the majority of Americans you find a partner and raise children. At the same time, the majority of your pay increases happen before your 40s The Atlantic This makes it extremely important to upskill and market yourself early. The net present value of a 10,000 pay raise assuming it remains part of your salary forever and 2 inflation is 223,964.56 over 30 years. So to those of you who have some time over the holiday season: grab a book, write some networking emails, or take an online course! Im currently finishing up a course in Machine Learning from Udacity and couldnt be happier. TL;DR: Your time is a resource to be invested just like any other. While its certainly worthwhile to spend some of it budgeting, the vast majority should be invested increasing your skills.  <response>: Dude this. Investing in your skills will allow you to have a more comfortable lifestyle AND save money.Maximize your earning potential WHILE optimizing your costs 