Divorce Knocked The Stupid Out Of Me

How does that saying go...A fool and his money are soon partying?
Something like that, right?

Despite my lifelong desire to own a Ferrari, and despite having made and lost several
different fortunes in the 47 years that I have been around...today I am chagrined to admit there is not only no Ferrari in my garage, right now there is no longer even a garage. Or a
pot to piss in.

And the ugly truth of it is, I didn't even lose all my money to broads and boats and booze -
that part of it was actually kind of fun.

No, the thing that really pisses me off is knowing that I am too damn smart to be so stupid with my money.

So today I begin to rebuild again.
Again.

And right now there is one thing that is clear:

I want a Ferrari like a lion wants a gazelle.
I am hungry for both the pursuit of it and the kill.

So I have now embraced owning a Ferrari as a symbol of my integrity, the value of my word, the value I am contributing to the marketplace, and as another symbol of my lust for life.

Today is February 23rd, 2012.
My promise is that by Feb 23rd, 2013 I will have my first Ferrari.

Will you help me get there?
This seems like a good place to begin.

Cheers,

Mike

 

Good luck

 

Define "help" . . .

 

They say divorce is expensive because it's worth it.

Good luck proving it!!

 

Another example of why everyone should invest in a pre-nup before they get married.

Good luck on your pursuit of a Ferrari.

BTW, it helps if you put your state, country, or region into the location field of your user profile.
.

 

Thanks GreyBoxer.

Wax,

I have now promised myself that I will have a Ferrari by Feb 23rd, 2013 and I intend to use this forum as a launchpad to help me get there. I will post here on a regular basis, keeping members updated on my progress, while offering whatever insight and encouragement I can to others with whatever they are up to.

At this point, "Help" simply means supporting me to be clear, effective and relentless in the pursuit of a Ferrari lease or purchase.

It means challenging and encouraging me to do the things I must, in order to keep my promise of having my car within a year.

It means calling me on my crap wherever it appears in any of my posts, it means inspiring or even taunting me to be and do my best in business, and it means offering me any insight, tips, opportunities or suggestions to achieve any milestones along the way of finally having the Ferrari keys on my keychain.

Helping me to be clear about everything and anything I must do to get there.

Right now, I'm not even sure what my first milestone should be in the pursuit of my Ferrari, although I can say that my first quarter milestone for my business is to:

"Set up the infrastructure to attract and serve enough happy clients to consistently net $21,000 per month, while having fun in a way that is meaningful and empowers me."


Right now I know next to nothing about Ferrari, or which car is the one I want to focus on. The most I know is that back when I was 19, I had leveraged a $5,000 student loan into the purchase of three rental properties - back then I figured I was invincible and ready for my first Ferrari. But when I went into a dealership here in Toronto to test drive a GT4, the salesman pretty much disqualified me on my age and I haven't been back into the dealership since.


So my first question is...what would you say are some essential milestones to achieve, before either leasing or purchasing a Ferrari?

 

Good luck, I will be watching with interest

 

What an awesome view!

Got it. Both the pre-nup in the future and updates to user profile. Thank you.

Thanks Fan512

 

Heck, I'll sell you mine this weekend if you want. What exactly are you looking for, and what is your general price range?

 

Then maybe a Ferrari isn't the right thing. I'm not sure owning a Ferrari is being smart with money.

-F

 

First and foremost, you need to have a garage to store it in.

Hello, apartment parking lot?

I don't think so.

Next, you need enough money: that "separates the men from the boys," as they say (no brag, just fact).

By "money" I mean not just enough to acquire the car, but also to properly maintain it: these aren't Camrys.

There are many choices of Ferrari cars: spend time looking into which make and model you are going to focus on: which one rings your bell (realistically: which one can you afford?)?

 

Mike,

Sorry about the divorce, seriously.

You know, if this is your goal....fantastic.

But, if it was me, I'd just be thinking about being financially stable and building up savings.

Keep building until you can look and feel comfortable with deciding what to do with some of it.

- Good Luck

 

Mike,

Sorry about the divorce.. and congratuations about the divorce. In my life every chapter had to come to an end before a new one could begin and I could move forward.

First, WHY do you want the Ferrari? is it a symbol of the success that you want? Is it the thought of attaining it that makes it alluring? Just curious what drives the desire.

Next, what model do you want? What model is most attractive to you? That is the one to go after. Don't worry about age.. all FCars are special and desired regardless.

Lastly, do something.. anything... that brings that dream closer to you to make it a reality. I started my hunt in March 4, 2009. That was the day that I realized that I could actually own a Ferrari. I bought a radio on ebay for the car because I surmised that the 360 or 348 that I would own.. woudl likely have some silver and blue aftermarket radio in it pimpin' it out. It arrived and I put it away. That was a concrete something that made the process real. Over the next year and a half I searched and worked to make it a reality. October of the next year, my 360 was in my garage. Now, my 360 is one concrete step towards the other life that I want to live.. house in Vail, independence, etc.

Best wishes on the journey.

 

Yikes, sounds like mid-life crisis. Get the money together and a place to put it, then (and only then) take your time buying it. I spent over a year looking for mine before I finally bought as it took that long to find the right car in the right color for the right price. It took me that long and I knew exactly what I wanted in a Ferrari as I've been absorbing everything I could about them since I was about 5 years old.

If you really want to be smart about it (and I don't think there's anything smart about a Ferrari purchase), you may be asking too much for getting everything to align in one year starting from scratch. You need to get the money, get a place to put it, and pick one. It took me over a year just to do that last part and find a good deal where I was reasonably confident I wouldn't be immediately losing 10-15k if the car had an unforseen issue. I think the only thing we may be able to help with is picking one and what you should pay, the rest is up to you to get together.

 

Wow. Thank you all.

Your replies confirm that I have found the best place to support me in this endeavor. Here I feel that I am already among friends. That in itself is a real blessing.

Robin, thank you for your offer. Right now the part of me that knows it can make things happen very quickly is saying "Yes! Let's make a deal!" Unfortunately, that is also the part of me that has sometimes left me feeling like the loser on a game show. Right now it is more important to prepare for my Ferrari purchase than to jump in and buy before I am truly ready. Still, I certainly do not want to close any doors or discount the possibilities, so again thank you for the offer. Your 355F1 is gorgeous and if it's still for sale later on this year I would love to hear more about it.

As far as price range goes, I am planning to spend no more than 20% of my monthly net income on a Ferrari, so once I am more familiar with the various years and models, I will simply adjust my income level to have the car I choose.


Furnamo and Jet, thank you for wisdom. Points gratefully received.

And I agree with Mr. V. that having "enough" money is what separates the men from the boys. I concur there are far more important things in life than cars.

VRS and Bob, I want the Ferrari because I have denied myself the Ferrari. Not because I am in any kind of crises, but because it is simply something that I want for me. To drive. Not for show. Not to impress other people, but to keep myself impressed, and possibly even validated, by seeing what I am truly capable of when I set my mind to it.

I want to be in command of all that power both literally and metaphorically. I want to feel the gears shift beneath my hand and compare it to the feeling of burying the needle at 300KPH on a bike. I want the feeling of devouring endless miles of TransCanada Highway en route to the Rocky Mountains. I want the high-performance thrill of surfing concrete waves along the Sunshine Coast. I want the music cranked at 3 oclock in the morning under the aurora borealis.

And, as our good friend Jim Rohn once said:

"You don't make the million dollars for the sake of having the million dollars, you make it for who you must become in the process."

I don't just want the car for having the pleasure of driving it, I want it for the experience of having built my strength of character through a very specific course of action. Of developing my resolve, of maintaining a certain focus for a fun and predetermined outcome, of taking on a challenge which required a superior level of performance in order to get 'er done, and most importantly, for the supreme challenge of maintaining impeccable integrity with my words and actions. I want this car for me and for more reasons than I need to say.

So it sounds like the next step for me is to set my sights on some specific models, and then I can start getting a better idea of price and other variables.

Thank you all again for your inspiring words and feedback. Had no idea ya'll would be so awesome and supportive.


- Mike

 

Sounds like you want a stick-shift Ferrari (as opposed to a paddle-shift one), true?

In one year's time, you may hit the jackpot with your money-making plans, but, let's assume money is still going to be limited for this discussion.

To give us an idea of which type of affordable Ferrari you'd like to own, tell us which one of the following models you're most passionate about and why:
- Ferrari 308
- Ferrari 328
- Ferrari 348
- Ferrari 355 (w/ stick-shift)
- Ferrari Mondial
- Ferrari 360 (w/ stick-shift)
- Ferrari 430 (w/ stick-shift)
- Ferrari 512 BBi
- Ferrari Testarossa
- Ferrari 550
- Ferrari 456
- some other Ferrari

These aren't all the models possible, but they are some of the more affordable models on the market.
It will help us a lot to know which era of cars you're passionate about and whether you're looking for an 8 cylinder or 12 cylinder car.

Thanks.

 

Sorry about the divorce, man. I wouldn't wish that on anybody, and I have many enemies.

As many say around here, I spent a lot of money on fast cars, faster women, Cherokee gaming, and malt liquor. The rest, I completely wasted. A Ferrari is a fine goal, but remember that a great car can't turn an unhappy life into a happy one.

What business are you in? FChat is a tremendous resource with loads of successful businesspeople who can point you in the right direction if you ask nice.

 

In the book "the millionaire next door they talk about ONE COMMON theme that most millionaires never did.......they never got divorced; I am sure its true b/c my brother, very well versed and successful attorney here in Atlanta went thru one two years ago; wife LEFT him, and he still paid into the 6 figures.....even he thinks the system is nuts! GOOD LUCK!~dogdoc

 

Ron that is a great list if I had to chose a (starter) Ferrari from that list it would defianetaly be the 355 with a manual box, a great Ferrari and cheap also what else could you want

 

This is your day off, right?

 

Are you drunk/high?
Are you looking for a loan?

 

I think there still might be a little bit of stupid left in there.

 

Marriage is for 99.9% idiots. Period.

 

Wow.

Are you talking about getting a Ferrari or learning to become a successful card counter in the casino?

Maybe you should check out bj21.com as well as this board.

I'm just sayin' ...

 

THIS!