When I came to Debrecen, I bought a bike making it necessary to buy a bike lock. I had a few options: A) piece of crap B) does the job C) the best. I did what most would do and went with B - the one that does the job. As temperatures dip to around -10C (or teen's F), this bike lock that "does the job" now freezes making me despairingly blow my warm breath into it like a crazy person in attempts to unlock it. Now, I am just waiting for the day that my mediocre key that fits into the mediocre lock breaks as I wiggle it around, and I have to walk my frozen ass home from wherever I may be.
As my numbing fingers were wiggling the key this afternoon, it became clear to me how much mediocre things suck.
Oscar Wilde said, "I have the simplest tastes. I am always satisfied with the best."
Me too, Oscar...
When we invest in mediocre things, we set ourselves up for disappointment. Whether it be a bit of money for a bike lock that "does the job," or a bit of time and energy for a job that is just "OK," upon our investment, we know that happiness and satisfaction is a gamble.
We can get away with settling for low quality when it comes to some things in life. For instance, I bought a pretty sweet scarf for $1 at a flea market. If I went out to some shop and invested in a mediocre scarf, I would always be wishing I had either gone to the flea market and find something for $1 or invest a bit more and go for the cashmere.
I realized the same is true for most aspects of life. Great achievements aren't supposed to be easy - you have to invest. So, when its time to invest next time, go for the big, beefy, well engineered bike lock and the cashmere scarf. You'll be happy you did.
BA-out
I want to say something, but I'll send it to you privately since I don't want to offend anyone. This is my favorite post of yours and I'm posting it on my blog. Like my brother, my father, and my brotherly father, Bruce have said to me my whole life, "Do it right the first time."
ReplyDeleteNow go buy yourself an expensive cutting torch.
Well at the risk of sounding shallow... This is how I justify buying the expensive clothes that I so prefer... :)
ReplyDeleteOn another note, I love this post too. And sometimes nothing beats the feeling of taking a risk and getting what you really want even if upfront it appeared to 'cost' more. In material objects and life circumstances.