My (Almost) Biggest Financial Mistake

Setting the Stage

I had just graduated college as a Mechanical Engineer.

I was fortunate enough to start a high-paying engineering job immediately.

Only ~7 months after starting this job, I realized something:

I could “afford” a Tesla.

I had legitimately dreamed of getting a Tesla for years. I am a huge tech nerd, and merging such great technology with a solid car is perfect for me.

I soon fell down the rabbit hole of test drives, research, customer reviews, pricing out my situation, etc.

I knew from my math that I could buy (take a loan out) one and continue to save each month.

I estimate I got 90% of the way to buying one.

I reached my down payment goal and was one night of no self-control away from going through with it.

What Stopped Me?

What was a massive frustration at the time turned out to be the godsend that stopped me from going through with it.

Price hikes.

See, this was during the height of COVID and thus supply chain restraints.

So, the Tesla (Model 3) I was looking at had gone from ~$45,000 to $55,000 in a few months.

This price increase pushed it out of reach for me.

Not only financially but because I struggled to believe it was even worth that price.

For a time I was extremely frustrated.

This thing that I had planned on for months, down to the details of where I would charge and when I would take delivery, had vanished.

But a more useful obsession came to replace it.

What Did I Learn?

Soon after I decided not to buy the Tesla, I became obsessed with building wealth.

I now saw the power I had at my fingertips by starting to save/invest so early in life.

I balanced my budget, built tools to ease this process, automated my saving/investing, and could see the path ahead of building a tremendous amount of money.

I learned that just because you can, doesn’t mean you should.

I could buy that Tesla and continue to save some, but that doesn’t mean I should have.

Not only would I have had to liquidate much of my investments to cover the downpayment, but the monthly decrease in savings would have easily cost me $10,000s in the long run.

I also learned the value of delayed gratification.

The truth is, I want a Tesla even more now than I did back then.

The difference is that I am working toward building things that will make paying for it far more manageable.

Things like building a side business (this brand) and piling onto investments as much as possible.

The more income I can generate and the more I can grow my overall wealth, the more realistic purchasing the Tesla becomes.

I haven’t let go of my dream of owning one.

I’ve just adjusted my path so I can still build the wealth I want while having it.

How It Has Shaped My Money Mindset

These lessons have pushed me to think with a long-term mindset and assess what I truly value in life.

The fact is, I definitely value having fun gadgets like a Tesla.

However, I also found a deep desire to live a life free of traditional constraints, such as a 9-5, and focus on things like friends, families, and hobbies.

After all, that’s really the end goal of money.

It’s not the paper itself, but the life that we can buy with that paper.

I feel confident I will look back on this situation as one of the most influential times in my life.

I hope it can help you avoid a similar mistake for yourself.

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