Written by 
Recently, my city’s been repairing the streets in my neighborhood. This event is noteworthy only because it’s a six-month project requiring the complete removal of much of the existing streets and entirely replacing them. This ordeal has been noisy, dirty, inconvenient, and outrageously expensive. One of our city officials told me that the price tag for the project was about 15 times higher than it would have been if they had simply maintained the streets over the past several years.
Deferred maintenance in our personal or professional lives has many direct costs, along with a number of hidden costs. There never seems to be a convenient time to schedule and take care of regular maintenance. No one wakes up in the morning with an overwhelming desire to replace the air filters, change the oil, or review their personal finances. These tasks are important but rarely immediate. If you wait another day or another week to change the oil in your vehicle, it likely will make no difference. However, if you defer this maintenance long enough, it can be a disaster.
I remember a commercial for an oil filter company many years ago promoting regularly scheduled oil changes and filter replacements. These commercials showed a mechanic getting ready to change the oil in a car while, in the background, an engine was being pulled out of another vehicle. I remember the mechanic’s line that ended the commercial, “You can pay me now or pay me later,” implying that regular oil changes could avoid having to replace your entire engine.
In addition to the overwhelming cost of deferred maintenance, it creates a looming emergency over which you have no control. You can schedule your oil change, but you cannot schedule when your engine will fail. You may think it’s inconvenient to conduct regular maintenance in your personal and professional lives, but that is nothing compared to the inconvenience of unanticipated and unscheduled mechanical breakdowns and financial emergencies.
There are enough elements in our lives, both at home and work, that we cannot control. Regularly scheduled maintenance can tip the odds in our favor.
As in many areas of life, being wise and prudent has to be its own reward because there is no applause or accolades when you do regular maintenance, and your vehicles, mechanical systems, financial and physical health don’t experience a crisis. Handle all your maintenance when you can control the schedule and when it is the least expensive.
As you go through your day today, prepare now or suffer later.
Today’s the day!
Did you enjoy this column? Feel free to share with anyone who might benefit!
If you are not already subscribed, sign up here:
Click here to receive Jim’s weekly column.
Jim Stovall is the president of the Emmy-award winning Narrative Television Network as well as a published author of more than 50 books—eight of which have been turned into movies. He is also a highly sought-after platform speaker. He may be reached at 5840 South Memorial Drive, Suite 312, Tulsa, OK 74145-9082; by email at Jim@JimStovall.com; or by phone at 918-627-1000.