I’m Trying Very Hard Not to Ask, “Can You Do Math?”

Mary Kelly Leadership Economist | Keynote Speaker | Conference & Training Programs

I am visiting my mom in Dallas and staying at a hotel with breakfast included. My breakfast requirements are modest: milk, coffee, and the opportunity to become a pleasant human being.

Then I watched a delivery arrive for two employees at the front desk.

Two fancy coffees. Delivered.

There was coffee available in the building. I was drinking it.

Naturally, because I am an economist and apparently incapable of minding my own business when numbers are involved, I opened DoorDash to see what a similar order would cost.

Here was the breakdown:

Twenty-seven dollars and twenty-six cents.

For two coffees.

At that price, I would like the coffee to answer my emails and explain why my printer is offline.

How much of your workday is in that cup?

I do not know what those employees earn. I also do not know who paid, whether someone had a gift card, or whether this was a rare treat after a particularly difficult morning.

But let’s use an illustrative wage of $13.47 to $16 an hour.

If two people split that bill, each pays $13.63. That is approximately 51 to 61 minutes of work, before taxes and other deductions.

Almost an hour of working to purchase a coffee that will be gone before the next hour is over.

Meanwhile, I am standing there with my included coffee, trying to keep my eyebrows from delivering an unsolicited financial seminar.

“It’s only coffee” is not a budget

Yes. It is only coffee.

It is also only lunch delivery. Only another subscription. Only an upgrade. Only a little shopping because the week was stressful.

“Only” does a remarkable amount of work in our spending vocabulary.

The issue is how easily an occasional purchase becomes an automatic expense. Once we stop noticing the transaction, we stop evaluating the trade.

So let’s imagine that two-coffee order happens twice a week. This is a hypothetical habit, not something I know about those employees.

The annual cost is $27.26 × 2 × 52 = $2,835.04.

Split equally, that is $1,417.52 per person per year.

That is a fairly expensive relationship with a beverage.

And $11.76 of each order is tax, delivery, service, and tip. The drinks themselves cost $15.50.

I support tipping delivery drivers. If you choose delivery, paying the person doing the delivering belongs in the cost. But it is worth noticing when getting the coffee to you adds almost 76% to the price of the coffee.

Convenience has an invoice.

Your coffee has an alternate future

Suppose each person redirected that $1,417.52 a year into monthly investments of approximately $118.13.

At a hypothetical 7% annual return, calculated with monthly compounding and deposits at the end of each month, that would grow to approximately $20,446 over ten years, before taxes and fees.

About $14,175 would be money contributed. The remaining approximately $6,271 would be growth.

Actual investment returns vary; a mutual fund does not promise a steady 7%.

But the illustration makes the opportunity cost visible.

You can have the delivered coffee. You can also give those dollars another job.

The challenge is that the coffee arrives today, with whipped cream. Your future financial security rarely sends a push notification saying, “Your peace of mind is approaching the front desk.”

You are allowed to enjoy your money

Before anyone sends me an impassioned defense of caramel, let me be clear: I spend money on things I enjoy.

I like wine. I travel. I have dogs, which means I have voluntarily accepted a financial arrangement with creatures who contribute absolutely nothing to the mortgage.

We all have priorities.

If delivered coffee is one of yours, budget for it and enjoy it. Perhaps it is a planned treat shared with a coworker. Perhaps everything else in your financial life is beautifully organized.

Wonderful.

But if you are worried about an unexpected bill, carrying expensive credit card debt, or convinced you cannot possibly find any money to save, examine the spending you have stopped questioning.

Small purchases do not explain every financial struggle. Housing, healthcare, childcare, and wages matter enormously.

They also do not make delivery fees disappear.

Do the math before you tap “place order”

Try three questions.

What does this cost me in working time? Use take-home pay for a more realistic answer.

What does this habit cost over a year? Multiply by how often you actually buy it. Your bank statement is more reliable than your memory.

Would I still choose it if I saw the annual total first?

Maybe the answer is yes. At least that is a decision.

And if you want the fancy coffee, perhaps pick it up, make it at home, or make delivery an occasional event. You have options: permanent deprivation or financing an espresso transportation system.

I did not ask those employees whether they could do math.

I smiled, drank my coffee, and kept walking.

Dr. Mary C. Kelly is a Hall of Fame leadership speaker, PhD economist, retired Navy Commander, and author of 22 books, including Leadership is Tough: What Great Leaders Do Differently.