but then again there WOULD be fewer jobs if everyone did that ( or a sizable amount of people).
Perhaps, but if the less useful jobs disappeared then the people currently doing them could do something that was useful. Or they could spend the time doing stuff for themselves so they didn't need to pay people to do it, and so wouldn't need to earn so much in the first place.
I figure there are three reasons why I'd pay someone to do something for me:
1. I don't have the knowledge/expertise/equipment
2. I don't have the time
3. I don't have the inclination
People offering services in (1) will always be in some demand. I don't know how to replace the gearbox in my car and don't have the tools to do it even if I did know. In theory I could learn and acquire the tools, but replacing the gearbox is something I do so infrequently it's cheaper to pay someone else to do it. If the price goes up here then I may reconsider whether I really need the service - a lawsuit may cease to be worthwhile because the lawyer is more expensive, I may decide to file my own tax return rather than having an accountant do it, but if my cat is sick I still need to take him to the vet.
People offering services in (2) are safe until I have more time on my hands. If I'm working long hours for a high wage it makes more sense to pay someone to mow the lawn than to take time out to do it myself. If I'm sitting around the house watching daytime TV there's no reason to pay someone to mow my lawn, other than to nudge them into group (3). If the price goes up I may use fewer services - I still don't have time to mow my lawn but now maybe I'll have it cut every two weeks rather than every week - but the fact I don't have time hasn't changed.
People offering services in (3) are the ones most vulnerable to this sort of change. If I just can't be bothered to mow my own lawn, as the price of the service rises due to taxation it's more likely that I'll decide that maybe I can be bothered now.
