Walking to the grocery store the other day, I spotted a couple beautiful cars outside a local hotel - a Ferrari 488 GTB and a Rolls-Royce Dawn, to be exact.
I’m a big car fan. I’ve seen every episode of Top Gear, I keep up to date with new models and specs, and I go to car shows.
But as I walked by both cars, I realized something: I had lost the desire to own and drive cars like them daily.
It’s a result of a gradual change in my own thinking, which can be summarized as: time not money.
Money = Freedom
Money is what we say we desire when what we actually want is freedom.
Money buys us the freedom to do what we want, work on what we want, travel where we want.
Ultimately, money buys us time.
Time to be free from work we don’t like, time to spend with our family while others run our businesses, time to exercise, time to make our own priorities.
"Trade money for time, not time for money. You’re going to run out of time first." - Naval Ravikant
Travel = Time
Travel by car, particularly in cities (like Montreal), is not exciting. It doesn’t much matter whether you have a Rolls or a Civic. I’d argue a Tesla is the best experience.
What I want when I’m driving in the city now is to...not be driving. I want to be in a quiet, comfortable Uber, thinking and doing other things.
I want the time instead.
"The rich invest in time, the poor invest in money." - Warren Buffett
I Still Love Cars
I still love cars. Car clubs like this one are a fantastic idea. Have your choice of cars when you want to spend the time enjoying one. Make use of that amazing GT car on your drive to the cottage for the weekend.
Driving experiences like this one are also a brilliant idea. Experience high-performing cars at a track, where you can actually take advantage of it.
But these days, 90% of the time I spend in a car, I don’t care which, and I don’t want to be driving.
I’d rather buy the time than the supercar.
