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Gun’s Quote-of-the-Week:

“Time. Money. Quality. Pick Two.”

-Phrase used, and others similar, by Project Management Professionals and Authors in various forms of business

Erik and I were talking in the car yesterday on our way to Cameron. The discussion centered on the fact that I’m trying to find a different car. It is time for the Bizzard Bullet to retire. I’ve sunk more money into her over the last year than she was worth, so it is time to move on. I absolutely hate it. I love that car… but I digress.

First of all, the used car market right now sucks. To find any of the options that I want, I’m looking at about $10,000 for a car with just shy of 100,000 miles. Ten grand! It’s absolutely absurd. So, I’ve been plodding around the internet, searching through classifieds, dealer websites, and creating custom searches and alerts on cars.com to try to find a good deal. The process has been time-consuming, and I’m getting tired of thinking I’ve found something, going to check it out, and being disappointed. This process is really one of the most frustrating that a human being can put himself/herself through, and it is the reason why I want to keep car-shopping a rare occurrence in my life. Its pain is second only to trying to buy a house.

As I explained to Erik, you have time, quality or money, and you can only pick two. This phrase I picked up in college and I’ve always found it to be true. It’s true at work, it’s true at school and, as Erik pointed out, it’s true at home, too. Simply put, if you want something cheap and high-quality, you have to not care how long it takes to get there. If something needs to be high quality and you need it now, you are going to pay out the nose. If you need it cheap and fast, it’s going to fall apart on you.

“You manage your money perfectly,” he told me going down the road, “but I wonder if the reason you struggle with time so much is because you care so much about your budget and making sure whatever you do is perfect that time gets scarified too often.” (Above paraphrased)

You know those “Ah Ha” Moments when things sudden get very clear? Yeah, that was one. Life has never really been balanced. I’m constantly robbing Peter to pay Paul, and there have been times when Peter has pounded on my door looking for me. While making sure that I’m happy with what I drive and also making sure that I can afford it long-term is important, throwing away weekend after weekend or choosing to blow-away an entire evening only to keep coming home with the same vehicle will cause problems sooner rather than later. Admittedly, I’m months behind on other priorities as well. Brian still doesn’t have a light fixture in his room.

It’s something I have to work on. At some point, you have to poop or get off the pot, pull the trigger and make a decision. I struggle with that; I want to know I couldn’t have done better.

Perhaps the lesson learned here is knowing that sometimes saving a little time is better, too.

…and that’s why it’s a Gun’s Quote!