The Morning Everything Stopped

I made what seemed like a smart decision.

Here in Brazil, my car can run on both ethanol and gasoline — it’s a flex-fuel vehicle. I’ve never bothered with ethanol before. I always filled up with gasoline because it was simple, reliable, and I knew it worked.

But I kept seeing ethanol at the pump. Every single time. About 30% cheaper than gasoline.

Eventually, I thought — why not? My car’s designed to handle it. Full tank of ethanol. Easy savings.

The next morning, the car wouldn’t start.

I had the morning planned out. School drop-off. Breakfast with my wife. Simple, intentional time that’s exactly how I want my days to look.

Instead, I spent the entire day researching what went wrong, coordinating with mechanics, and eventually learning that ethanol blends here don’t start when temperatures drop below around 15°C. The onboard computer also needs time to adjust the timing and fuel type. That’s why the ethanol you see in the U.S. is 10% or less. I went full tank.

Long story short: my attempt to save a few bucks on fuel cost me 10X that amount in towing, replacing a broken starter motor, and emptying the entire tank to switch back to gasoline.

But it wasn’t the money that hurt. It was the time.

That morning was supposed to be a fun with the kids at school, babysitter with the baby and a quiet breakfast with my wife. For those with kids, you know how hard that is to come by.

Instead, I’m dealing with a problem I created by chasing a small, immediate optimization instead of living what I actually wanted my day to look like.

Moral of the Story?

Don’t make ethanol-driven choices.

We make easy, momentum-driven choices today that quietly sabotage the life we say we want tomorrow.

You tell yourself: “When the kids are older, I’ll travel with them to explore the world.”

But are you building towards that today? Or are you going through the same routine, the same commute, the same weekend errands, ensuring that tomorrow looks exactly like yesterday?

You tell yourself: “I should look into setting up a second residency, but I’ll do that this weekend when I have more time.”

The weekend comes. Something else takes priority. Something easier or more “fun”. Something that doesn’t require research, decisions, or change. And the thing you said you’d do gets pushed again.

When the time finally comes — when the kids are older, when you “have more time,” when conditions feel perfect — another thing will come up. Another urgent priority. Another reason to wait just a little longer.

Going About Today Like Yesterday Ensures Tomorrow Stays the Same

If your goal is to explore the world with your family, look at your day-to-day. Are you building towards that? Or are you spending your mental energy on things that don’t move you closer?

If your goal is to set your kids up with an edge — real optionality, global perspective, multiple pathways forward — what are you doing every day that’s different from everyone else?

I know it’s not because you don’t want to. It’s because the momentum of daily life is strong. The easy choices are easy. And it’s comfortable to believe that “someday” you’ll get to it.

But the truth is: ahem…read the title again…which is another frustrating reminder for me.

The Long-Term Day-to-Day

Here’s what I learned from that ethanol mistake:

The long-term vision isn’t some distant, abstract goal. It’s how you want your actual days to be, every day.

For me, that’s not spending mental energy and time on car issues or getting excited about saving a few bucks at the pump. It’s driving my kids to school. It’s breakfast and exploring the city with my wife.

Your long-term isn’t about what you’ll do “when the time is right.” It’s about what your daily life is like, NOW.

And if your current day-to-day doesn’t reflect the vision you have, you’re making the ethanol mistake.

One Small Thing

Here’s what I’m asking you to do:

Commit to doing one small thing towards your long-term vision. Not this weekend. Not when things calm down. Today.

It doesn’t have to be dramatic:
– Research one second residency option
– Book a scouting trip to a location you’ve been “thinking about”
– Open a conversation with your spouse about what you both actually want your life to look like in 5 years
– Have breakfast with your partner
– Email someone who’s already living the life you say you want and ask them how they did it

Just one thing. Then do it again tomorrow. And the next day.

Because the families with little differences between their vision and their daily reality — they’re not lucky. They’re not richer or smarter or more capable.

They just stopped making easy choices that felt good in the moment and started making intentional choices that protected what actually mattered in the long term.

The Real Cost

That morning I spent dealing with my broken-down car wasn’t about the money. It was about the gap between what I said I valued (time with my family, intentional mornings) and what my choices actually protected (saving 30% at the pump).

The same applies to your life.

If you say you want your family to have options, but you’re not building them — you’re making the ethanol mistake.

If you say you want to travel and explore with your kids, but your calendar looks the same month after month — you’re making the ethanol mistake.

If you say you want your children to grow up with a global perspective and real optionality, but you’re staying in the same system, the same routine, the same path everyone else is on — you’re making the ethanol mistake.

The cost isn’t just financial. It’s time. It’s the life you wanted to live that keeps getting pushed to “someday.”

Start Today

Don’t let the momentum of easy choices dictate your long-term reality.

Pick one thing. Do it today. Then do it again tomorrow.

Your long-term vision isn’t built in one dramatic decision. It’s built in the small, consistent choices you make when it would be easier to do nothing.

The families living the life you want didn’t wait for perfect conditions. They just stopped making the ethanol mistake.