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When my girlfriend and I first moved to California, one of our most important decisions was whether or not we needed two cars. At the time I believed that having two cars was almost necessary, because carpooling could be a major pain depending on our office locations. Also, if we did have two cars and one broke down or needed maintenance, we would still be able to get by. We lucked out on the first issue since our offices are only 10 miles from each other.
We got wound up with all the minor details. Infrequent events such as maintenance, almost pushed us to purchase a second car. It seems crazy. And yet, there we were seriously considering it. We even went so far as test driving several cars.
In the end we didn’t buy a second car. We took a serious look at the financial implications and we decided we would be better off trying to “get by” with only one car. Looking back on this made me wonder what was going on. What was making me change my definition of my needs?
I Was Used to Having Two Cars
One of the things that I’ve come to realize is it’s so easy to justify need. When I grew up, my family always had two cars. Whenever one of the cars would get old we would replace it. During the workweek, 90% of the time my family would go in a single car. But the 10% of the time that we did use the second car, it seemed so necessary. As if we wouldn’t know how to continue living without it. And I guess because of this, I’ve been conditioned to believe that having two cars is necessary.
I Focused on Inconvenience Not Frequency
When I considered the outcome of our car breaking down or needing to take it in for maintenance, I got so caught up with the inconvenience it would cause. I figured we would need to rent a car, and I worried about the cost. However, I was perfectly fine with potentially paying $300 a month for the new car. With daily car rentals being well under $50 a day it seems a little ridiculous to be making this comparison. To this day we haven’t had to rent a car. We’ve been able to handle routine maintenance by getting friends to pick us up or drop us off at the dealership. And while my car is about to hit 70,000 miles we still haven’t run into major breakdowns (thankfully!).
I Was Getting Caught Up in Details
I’ve found time and time again that I will lean towards making an a decision because it seems easier. Worrying about sharing the car, worrying about renting a car if my car broke down. These were all details that I didn’t want to deal with. I let these details cloud my judgement and I almost made a decision solely based on details. I wasn’t making a decision based on the entire picture. I wasn’t answering the important questions.
- Was the extra spending justified?
- Did we consider all other options?
- Would we be happy with our purchase a month after making it?
Lessons Learned
So far not purchasing a new car has worked out well for my girlfriend and me (**crossing my fingers my car doesn’t break down on me tomorrow**). And I’m fortunate to be in situation where I can learn from a mistake that I almost made. There are two major lessons that I learned from this.
Worrying About Details Can Lead to Poor Decisions
By focusing too much on the details, we can end up making decisions for the wrong reasons. It’s important remember the big picture, and let that guide your decision process. The details will work themselves out. Worrying about them will only cloud your judgement. For us the big picture was figuring out if the value provided by having a second car was justified by its costs. Ultimately the answer to that question was no.
It’s Easy to Get Caught Up in Preconceived Notions
All I’ve ever known growing up was having two cars. The funny thing is that I didn’t even realize that I was falling victim to this preconceived notion. It’s only in looking back and reflecting that I realized why I felt that way. I know now that if I’m strongly attached to some idea or way of doing things, I need to look deep to find my real justification. The details of the maintenance schedules were just excuses to cover up my preconceived notion.
Your Take
Have you ever made a financial decision based on the little details? What did you learn from it?
(Photo credit: rdvortex)
Update: This post was selected as an editor’s pick in the Carnival of Money Stories hosted by Suburban Dollar. This was also featured in Festival of Frugality #238 hosted by Wealth Junkies.
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When I was growing up, my mom and dad both worked but we always got by with one car. But that was the norm back then, like having one TV. Nowadays, “everyone” thinks they need a separate car for every person in the household who has a driver’s license. Not true! Congratulations on sticking to your guns and making one car work. Yes, it can be inconvenient at times, but not so inconvenient to justify borrowing money for another car.
Thanks Joe. We’ve had our struggles managing only having one car, but in the end the amount we’ve saved far exceeds the any inconveniences. The best part about our strategy is that we’re slowly saving up by putting money into a “new car fund.” So one day if we decide that we actually do need a job (due to a change in circumstances), then hopefully we’ll be ready to purchase the car outright without having to worry about borrowing money. A win-win situation in my book!
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