At some point we have all felt as if our car, the parts we use, the tools we own, the condition of our garage/shop or something else is inadequate compared to others. Countless TV shows and YouTube videos show shops or just people in general using the newest tools to create works of art. We can all agree that the final products of these builds, with the newest and nicest parts and tools do come out as masterpieces. But then the average car guy or girl thinks, how can I make something that must be magnificent? I must need a bigger shop with brand new tools. Then I need to start with a rust-free car and throw tens of thousands of top-of-the-line parts at the build. It is just human nature, it's the old saying “keeping up with the Joneses” mixed with a bit of our own ego. We see someone with something that is nicer than what we have and instantly get this deep desire to show we are equal. People do it in every aspect of life and the car community is no different. There are people in the community who want to show their status and that they are “better” than others. This isn’t the case for everyone. There are some people who have worked hard, have talent, or whatever else and were able to afford the opportunity to have a vehicle like that. Which I think is an interesting dichotomy.

People see someone who has an expensive rare car and can become jealous or think to themselves how lucky they are, they don’t deserve that, must be nice, and so on. At some point we are guilty of this, if you catch yourself occasionally, it’s okay but when it becomes a deep-rooted issue that’s when the problems arise. There are two perspectives to every situation, this situation is no different. Just stop for a second and think to yourself okay, how did that person get that car, part, tool, and so on. Did they go to school for a long time and get a good job? Did they build that car themselves by teaching themselves new things? Do they have a side hustle they have spent countless hours growing? There are numerous ways people work hard to be able to put themselves in the situations they desire. Everyone just sees the final product and thinks oh wow, looks good must be nice. How many people actually stop to think about what goes into getting to the position they are in. It's the same for cars. People see the finished product but may not stop to think how the person who built that car spent hours blocking the car, built numerous floor pans to get it exactly right, and remade a piece hundreds of times. See the result but think how they got there.

There is another interesting dichotomy in the car community because there is that side that is not good where we want to “keep up with joneses” and have the best painted car at the show with the biggest engine and nicest parts. However, on the other side every car person has the innate desire to go faster, build something better than the last car, make a thousand horsepower, the list goes on and on. These desires are just hardwired into car people; it really has nothing to do with what other people have and everything to do with one upping yourself and hitting that next goal. A perfect example is the article I did with Lex Joon he states, “Once you start down the strip it doesn’t matter what numbers are up on the board. Maybe it says 16 seconds, and that might not be that impressive, but then you think, “let’s see if we can make this quicker”. Then you get 15.5 seconds, then you keep working at it. I always want to go faster because I know it can be done. Once you get bit by the bug, it never goes away. For someone like myself, it is never fast enough. I always want to go faster; it is never enough. I will never quit doing what I love.” Even looking at a show like Roadkill, which if you don’t know what this is, what are you even doing?! They are one of the best examples of just getting out there and driving your car no matter the condition it is in. You don’t need the nicest car or the best parts to go out there and have fun with your car and friends. However, even within the episodes there is still that innate desire to push these cars just a little bit further in multiple aspects. It's every episode of every season. Seeing a car can just be brought back to life, taking a beat-up old car hundreds of miles across country, driving an El Camino across the country then ice racing, taking a car from a junkyard and seeing what it can do on the strip, the list goes on forever. It's not about having the best “stuff.” It’s about taking what you have and pushing it to its absolute limit. Getting all the enjoyment you can get out of what you have. It's about showing that taking a beat up rusted old truck or car out of a junkyard bringing it back to life and showing any vehicle can be just as fun if not even more fun than the cleanest vehicles with the most horsepower from the fanciest shops in the world.

Even with these dichotomies in mind there are multiple reasons why you need to always police yourself when you begin sliding down that water slide that is made with money and fed by oil and noise.

It goes back to the first section when you see these big shops with the nicest tools to build a car and you think to yourself what’s even the point, I don’t have those tools I’m never going to be as good as them. It applies to any discipline, welding, metal shaping, painting, and so on. There are always going to be people who are better than you, but it does not mean you shouldn’t even try. Everyone who is at the top of their field was once at the bottom of their field. There was someone better than them at some point but through hard work, dedication, and consistency they kept learning new tricks, new techniques, and they eventually became one of the best. Some people may say well they had this much money or they were born into a family that had the shop or they are naturally talented. Which yes all could be true I’m sure just after reading that sentence a person popped into your mind that you have had those thoughts about before. But how many stories and people have we all heard who started with absolutely nothing or had no idea what they wanted to do. They just found one day you know I want to try my hand at this and every day they grew one percent better. After days and years of getting a little better every day those small wins amount to a massive victory. Continuing down the path of getting one percent better every day.

When starting a build make sure to set realistic expectations or goals you can reach. It’s not unreasonable to want to push yourself and set high goals that you can strive towards. High or even unrealistic expectations for a build can cause a problem when the requirements you put on yourself weigh you down. The goals you want are so high and so far in the future that you are overwhelmed with the thought of all the work you must do before you even start. Just tailor your goals to your skill level at the time. As you reach those goals your skill level will grow along with it and your new goals can now become more advanced. Lamborghini started out making tractors and now makes supercars. Perfection isn’t achieved overnight. Start out making rust buckets and end making SEMA winners.

Besides the mental pitfalls there are also financial pitfalls when it comes to one upping yourself as well as others. There is a quote I think succinctly shows why besides the mental side of wanting to have the best of everything there are monetary downsides. The quote states “As long as you are in debt none of the money you make belongs to you.” This can clearly be applied to all aspects of life but especially in cars it is easy to think well this tool or part is only this much. Oh well now I have this I need that to go with it. The whole hobby is a very slippery slope of what you actually need and what you think you need. Take the build slow; you don’t have to go for the best right off the line. Buy what you can afford at the time so you can at least get the car finished, running better, etc. Then as you build up more money upgrade to the items you wanted from the start.

In the end ask yourself why you are into cars. Is it really to show off to your friends or others in the community? “Look at me I have the nicest paint job, the fanciest parts, the biggest engine, the most expensive car in general. Or are you into cars because it lets you bond with your kids, meet new people, push yourself to learn new things and just enjoy being in the community.

Don’t forget to comment and share with a friend who needs some motivation to work on or drive their ride!