30 years ago, I was working in a Volkswagen Audi dealership cleaning cars. I remember distinctly a customer (I can still recall his name!) coming in to collect his new car – An Audi Coupé Quattro Turbo in red (I think the colour was called Tornado Red?!). This car was something special; 200 bhp and a presence and build quality that set it apart from other cars on sale in late 80s. I looked wistfully at that car in March 1988 and wondered if I’d ever be able to afford anything like it.
Forward-wind to last year and I had lunch with a former colleague and good friend. He told me a story about his late father; he was given a very special bottle of whisky for his birthday and he kept it in the cupboard saying that he was ‘saving it for a special occasion’. The years rolled by and every time the family asked if he was going to open it, their enquiry was always met with the same answer: “I’m saving it for a special occasion”.
Recently his father sadly passed away and while the family were sorting through his effects they came across the unopened bottle. Hearing this story touched me quite profoundly and really made me consider some of the choices that I’ve made. I’m naturally quite risk averse and I saw echoes of my own behaviour in my friend’s father’s.
I’ve worked hard to make a success of my business since starting in late 2014 and it has sometimes been at the expense of work/life balance. It has also, at times, caused considerable stress to both myself and those closest to me but my overwhelming feeling looking back on the last 4 years is one of pride - Thirty years ago I was cleaning cars and now I have my own successful business.
The point of this story? There are no guarantees running a company (particularly at the moment) and it would be easy (and some would say extremely prudent) to keep expenditure to an absolute minimum. But I haven’t. I’m celebrating a milestone birthday this year and in reality, I’ve got less years ahead than are behind me – so I’ve opened my whisky in the form of a new car. Obviously, the Coupé Quattro Turbo is long gone but I’ve bought the modern-day equivalent (minus the Coupé bit!) and I love it.
Sometimes you have to seize the day, celebrate achievements and milestones and remember that the special occasion is happening right now.