Meeting Porsche Owners

Last year, I wrote an article titled, “How Can I Ever Afford a Porsche? A Simple Question to My Husband,” and surprisingly, it still gets a lot of feedback and messages.

「どうすればポルシェを買えるようになる？」素朴な疑問を夫にぶつけてみた

This isn’t exactly a sequel, but my husband has been meeting and connecting with various Porsche owners in different places, and recently he said something that really stuck with me.

I still have a long way to go. It’s humbling. There’s always someone above you. When I talk with everyone, I feel like a brand-new employee just starting out in the working world. I have to keep pushing myself and earn more!

He said.

As his wife, I’m really happy to see him motivated, but if he’s a “new employee,” then I’m probably like a “kindergartener just starting school” (-_-). It really makes me realize how vast the world is.

When I asked him, “If there are people above you, what are they like?” he said,

Hmm… If I compare it to cars, it’s like the “gear ratio” is completely different. Everyone has the same “24 hours in a day,” which is like the engine’s RPM. For example, everyone can rev up to about 8,000 RPM. But since there’s a redline, it’s impossible to work beyond 8,000 RPM all day long.
On the other hand, those top people have a different “gear ratio”. Their max RPM is the same 8,000, but their gear can go up to 100 speeds, so just by pressing the gas a little, they can earn a lot even at only 1,000 RPM.

I thought, wow… He really loves using car analogies (laughs). He continued,

Talking with those people reminded me that when I worked at a company, I thought, “I’ll work hard and someday be able to buy a Porsche.” But I realized that just working from morning till night and climbing the corporate ladder doesn’t necessarily mean you can afford one.
Sure, maybe someday you can, but it’s inefficient.
If you can work that hard, you should work just as hard but in a more efficient environment to earn more. That’s partly why I started my own business, and I feel like starting my own company raised my gear ratio and helped me earn more.

I see… To that, I said,

But not everyone can start a business. I tried it in my 20s, but I wasn’t cut out for it and didn’t get the results I wanted. In fact, I kept pushing the engine hard at 8,000 RPM in the redline zone until it broke down (laughs).

He replied,

Yeah, I’m not saying everyone should start a business. The easiest step might be changing jobs.
It’s best to improve your skills and work efficiently where you’re appreciated. Also, side jobs or investments for passive income might be ways to raise your gear.
Anyway, even if you work hard, working in first gear versus sixth gear makes a huge difference in results.

Then he added,

Also, I think it’s important to break free from the mindset of “earning by time.”
Most salaried workers get paid monthly and live within systems like overtime and paid leave, so they naturally calculate their pay based on time. I used to be like that too. I even did a lot of unpaid overtime and weekend work (laughs).
But now I realize it’s hard to earn a high income by selling your time. Throughout history, very few people have made a fortune by selling their time. Top athletes, elite engineers, business owners, and celebrities who earn a lot don’t get paid by the hour. They earn by offering their skills, abilities, or services. You have to convert that into money. That’s what raising your gear means.
Changing your mindset from this “time-for-money” model is really important.

Once he starts talking like this, he won’t stop until he’s convinced himself (lol), so I asked,

I hear a lot of people around me say they want to start a business, but they hesitate because they might temporarily lose access to their car or won’t have time or money for hobbies. Have you ever felt that kind of anxiety when you started your business?

He answered,

Well, I think it comes down to the “passion” I mentioned before.
When I first started my business, I had no money, but I was obsessed with always having a car to drive, never letting that stop. I scraped together my savings and bought a used BMW for 360,000 yen on Yahoo Auctions. I cut back on food expenses to pay for gas. It was about to break down, but it was a fun car.
Basically, if you really want to, you can do anything. If you don’t, it’s because you don’t have enough “passion” to succeed, to drive a Porsche, to become who you want to be.

I see — passion, huh.

When I hear “passion,” I immediately imagine pushing the engine hard at 8,000 RPM in first gear, so I guess I need to change that way of thinking first. That said, since I started blogging, I feel my mindset has been slowly shifting.

Towards the Goal of Buying a Porsche

We’ve known each other for almost 10 years now, and my husband has always been someone who likes spending time with mentors who are far ahead of him. When I said, “That hasn’t changed, huh?” he said,

Because it’s inspiring. I think, “Wow, that’s amazing,” and if I study and imitate the behavior and mindset of those incredible people, I might get there too. That thought excites me. I want to be able to earn a lot even while idling soon (laughs).

I was listening a bit skeptically, thinking, “That sounds like a story from another world since I haven’t even reached the goal of buying a Porsche myself” (-_-), but…

Luckily, I meet people who are far ahead of me, so I want to keep learning from them and work hard to see that view myself someday.