I used to do a commute of around 1.5 hours each way, every day, for years. This was justified by my (at the time) reasonable salary, and all the self-reflection

I used to do a commute of around 1.5 hours each way, every day, for years. This was justified by my (at the time) reasonable salary, and all the self-reflection and podcast listening I could do. This was foolish in hindsight (speaking personally of course, I have no doubt that some people enjoy their commute). I didn't appreciate this was 3 hours, every day, of the prime years of my life. I will never get that time back. And what's more is that I didn't factor this into my salary justification. I saw salary as compensation for my hours _in_ work: this is wrong. It's also your time getting there. That's the comparison you should make, which may make that local job more appealing.