Why I Drive An '05

Reliability and a small nut: the path to career adventure

My wonderful car

I drive an ‘05 Camry.  It’s pretty bada**! I don’t drive it because it’s got a wicked cool spoiler. I don’t drive it because it can do 0-60 in a smooth 12 seconds. I don’t even drive it because it’s got real leather, not that fake plastic vegan stuff. I drive it because it helps me dependably fuel career adventures. 

You might say, “Wouldn’t you rather drive a Rivian or even a Range Rover?” two cool rides for a hip career adventurer, right? Maybe if you want to look cool.  But, if you want to have the fuel to flourish over time, then no! Take care in what you drive.

What You Drive Matters

Most people try to keep up with the Jones’s. You “need” what your neighbor has. So, you buy a Lexus when the Toyota will do.  It’s your inner green-eyed monster. The problem is that you overbuy. You buy the aspirational car, the max affordable house, and the lux vacation. Then, you wonder why you aren’t saving enough money. The green-eyed monster robs you of your career freedom.

Tension arises when your chosen career path feels a little lackluster. You don’t feel capable of switching paths. “Minor” career risks, like switching roles at the same company seem like major ones. Heaven forbid you upset your boss. Major career changes like switching companies, industries, or even paths altogether aren’t even on the board. They’re pipe dreams when you’re financially stretched.

A grad school professor once told me, “Never be beholden to a job. Be able to walk away if you must.”  This is very tough to do. Yet, he opined that if you are asked to do something illegal, you must be able to walk away at a moments notice.  Financial flexibility is your saving grace. It’s harder to say no if you don’t have a little bit of savings to fall back on.

The same thing applies to our careers.  Without savings or a low expense load, it makes it harder to spend money on your career.  You have less of an opportunity to save for educational reinvestment, starting a business, exploring a hobby, or more.

Reliable Cars Fuel Career Adventures

The single biggest reason I drive an ‘05 Toyota Camry is reliability.  I’ve put more than 200k miles on the car.  This car is a beast.  It’s crossed the country. It’s climbed mountains.  I’d bet most Rivian drivers never take their rides to the local hiking trail, let alone on Route 66.

Investing in reliability has saved me tens of thousands of dollars.  According to Experian, the average new car payment in 2024 is $735 per month*.  That’s approximately $8,800 per year!  I paid off the car in 2011.  Adjusting for inflation, I’ve “saved” somewhere between $80,000 and $100,000 in new car payments over the past 12 years.

Buying Used Fuels Career Adventures Too

I bought my car used.  Since I was buying a reliable car, I figured this was a safe bet.  Plus, it was a great way to save money.  Again, according to Experian, the average used car payment in 2024 is $523 per month**.  Even if you need a replacement car, go used.  This will save you $2,400 per year, $24,000 over ten years.  This can easily pay for those classes and certifications you want to pursue

We All Need Planned Career Maintenance

We tend to omit career maintenance in our ongoing planning. The rationale may be two fold. First, we rely on our company to pay for our career development. We expect them to fund it with training and conferences. This is risky. If you are in finance and want to explore photography, do you think your employer will approve this. Nope! You need to budget for it.

Second, we focus on investing in education only through college. We pay for kids school activities, tuition, and more, prepping them to leap into the world. But, we likely omit educational maintenance for ourselves, the economic engines that we are. On average, Americans spend $111 / month on education. This is likely for our kids and doesn’t include private school.

Pretend you are a production line for a moment. You produce valuable widgets. You’ve invested a lot in making yourself capable of producing valuable widgets. How would you operate the line? Wouldn’t you take time for maintenance, to make sure it runs reliably? Wouldn’t you consider investing in it from time to time to improve its widget making ability? Of course you would. So, why wouldn’t you treat yourself the human production engine the same?

Keep Drinking Lattes, But Have a Small Nut

We’re approaching prime pumpkin spice latte season. You don’t have to give these up. Just remember one of the keys to living a good life from Graham Parker, an English singer and songwriter. In the movie This is 40, Paul Rudd asked him the key to living a good life. Graham said, “Have a small nut; that’s the key to life.” The nut Parker was referring to is monthly expenses. Don’t overspend!

Your daily $5 latte is but a minor monthly expense. A car, especially a new one of the luxury sort is far greater. Ask yourself what’s more important, getting the new ride with super sat nav and Bose speakers or investing in yourself? I know you aren’t going to give up the lattes. Keep drinking them, forget the car, and go after that certification you want.

Remember, your career requires ongoing maintenance. It requires investment. No career investment lasts forever thus you need to budget for it.

Thanks for reading!

Paul G. Fisher

PS - I want to make two things crystal clear.

First, I know how tough finances are to manage. Taking care of yourself and providing for a family is expense. For many, socking away a few bucks is truly aspirational. Just remember that expenses like cars are one of the biggest things that can hold you back from financial and career flexibility.

Second, I really WANT a new car. My Camry’s key fob doesn’t work and we’ve taped the driver’s seat leather with Gorilla Tape. The antiquated six disc CD player doesn’t work. The car doesn’t have blue tooth. But, the heart and soul of the ‘05 is working well. Much to my wife’s chagrin, this car should last ‘til 300k. That could be another 6 years of car life. I’d avoid spending another $50k during that time frame. Enough money to invest in the coaching certifications that I’m going after.

Notes on Stats

*- Average new car loan of $40,000

**- Average used car loan of $26,000