It was 2:30pm, Friday afternoon.

 

I’d spent the past three hours pacing around my office preparing for two speeches I was going to deliver at a Toastmasters competition the next day.

 

I was about to leave the house to sneak in a cheeky gym session to finish off the day. 

 

But when I walked out the front door, I noticed the front left car tyre was flat…

 

I hastily walked back inside and said to Kaci, 

 

 

I stormed back outside and had a closer inspection. 

 

There was a big-ass nail jammed in the centre of the tyre.

 

And you know what the most annoying part was?

 

The day before I’d been at Bridgestone to get a quote for two new rear tyres (our back right tyre also had a nail in it…)

 

After I calmed down, I thought to myself,

 

 

I was determined to give it a crack. 

 

Our driveway is on a bit of an incline which isn’t ideal for changing a tyre. I didn’t have anything to chock the back wheels to stop the car from rolling. So I had to improvise. I searched through the garage and found a weight plate. I wedged this 2kg plate in front of the back tyre.  

 

And slowly started jacking the car up. 

 

I took the flat tyre off. 

 

So far so good. 

 

Then I tried to fit the spare tyre on, but I didn’t quite have enough height.  

 

So I started raising the jack even higher. 

 

And then…

 

‘BANG!’

 

The weight plate I used to chock the back tyre didn’t hold… the rear tyre rolled over the plate and the jack came crashing down. 

 

The car landing on the front wheel rim… 

 

Damn it! 

 

Time was ticking away. 

 

I huffed and puffed as I walked back inside. Kicking a helpless air balloon that was laying on the floor (sorry).  

 

In the past, I would have been in a rage by now. But I took a deep breath and composed myself. And then went back outside for another shot. 

 

I positioned the jack back under the car. 

 

And started slowly jacking the car up. 

 

So far, so good.

 

And then… 

 

‘BANG!’

 

The car started rolling again. The jack fell out. And the car crashed into the garage roller door. 

 

There was NO way I was getting to my 3:30pm gym class now…  

 

 

I called my next door neighbour for help. 

 

He’s got a 4WD with all the bells and whistles. And he often goes off road on adventures. So I knew he would have the right gear to help out. 

 

When he got home from work he came straight over. 

 

He had a winch on the front of his 4WD that he hooked up to the back of our car.

 

This pulled our car away from the garage roller door and acted as our wheel chock. He even had the power tools and socket fittings to make changing the tyre an absolute breeze.  

 

If only I had called my neighbour in the first place… 

 

At first I was p*ssed off. I couldn’t get to the gym. But upon reflection, life was doing me a favour. It helped me conserve my energy so I could show up as my best for the Toastmasters Competition the next day.

I knew it was risky to change the tyre on an incline without adequate wheel chocks. But I tried it anyway. And I messed sh*t up. If I called my neighbour BEFORE doing anything I would have saved myself a lot of pain and frustration.

I was a tool. I tried to rush the job so I could get to the gym. I didn’t have the right tools to safely change the tyre on an incline. Thankfully my neighbour had all the tools and equipment to make this task a breeze. When you have the right tools it makes the job faster and easier.

 

If your finances feel like you’re driving along on three wheels. 

 

Don’t be a tool like me. 

 

Use the right tools. 

 

And ask for help. 

 

It will save you time, energy and money. 

 

Book a call with your friendly ‘money mechanic’ today.