A glance at my budgeting app for July and you’ll immediately spot an irregularity: a monstrous £660 ($840) expense labelled “event,” far larger than the typical $30 I spend on events here in Ho Chi Minh City.
This irregularity is the most expensive VIP package for Taylor Swift’s The Eras tour in Liverpool next June. I wouldn’t normally dream of spending this much on a single concert (or multiple, for that matter). Neither do I consider myself a very very important person. But it was the only ticket class still available, and if I wanted to be in that stadium having an experience of a lifetime, this was the price to pay.
£660 did seem like an enormous sum. It was ten times more than the £60 I had originally planned to spend. With five minutes to conclude the purchase before my seat would be released to hundreds of other eager fans, I frantically converted the amount into Thai baht to reveal the magnitude of my would-be indulgence. My suspicions were confirmed—it’s vast. The question: Is it worth it?
The answer came… swiftly: Yes. I entered my credit card details, hit “Pay,” and broke down in tears as my ticket was confirmed—I’ll be seeing Taylor next June.
£660 poorer and soon another £880 ($1,100) to get myself to the UK (and then there’s train tickets, hotels, etc.)… do I regret it?
Not in the slightest.
Would I do it again?
No.
Once-in-a-lifetime experiences
What makes once-in-a-lifetime experiences special for me is precisely that—it happens once in a lifetime.
The reason I made up my mind so quickly when I saw how much Taylor’s ticket was going to set me back was, I realised going to this concert would be a once-in-a-lifetime experience.
I would never dream of parting with £660 for any other concert. But this is Taylor—the one and only artist I’ve loved for a decade and a half. £660 seems a small price to pay to have my wildest dream come true.
So I paid. And I don’t regret a single penny.
But, if she announced another tour in ten years’ time, would I join the fray for a second chance at seeing her perform?
I don’t think so. Going again—though I’m sure it will be enjoyable—would devalue the experience. Getting to see Taylor in Liverpool next year would no longer be special—it would no longer be that one time I got to see her perform, just the first of many.
And I wouldn’t want that.
What would you choose?
In three and a half decades, I can count my once-in-a-lifetime experiences on one hand: getting accepted onto my course at UCL with a personalised letter saying how especially suited I was to it, my exchange year living in beautiful Paris and getting a summa cum laude from my dream school Sciences Po, meeting my partner in a bar in Luang Prabang, getting my current job working for my favourite author, and soon to be added: seeing Taylor perform live.
I don’t know how many once-in-a-lifetime experiences you’re supposed to have in a lifetime. You’ve probably had far more. But I’m happy with my five. If I never have another once-in-a-lifetime experience, I’d be perfectly fine with it.
I’ve had these five. They were all pretty special. I don’t need more.
In fact, if I had to choose, I’d choose a life with small daily pleasures over one filled with once-in-a-lifetime experiences any day.
Sure, I didn’t get the same adrenaline rush buying my daily croissant and latte on my way to class as I did opening that UCL acceptance letter. I didn’t puff up with pride ringing customers’ purchases in the café where I worked in Paris like I did receiving that summa cum laude certificate. I don’t feel that excitement of potentially meeting “the one” lazing with my partner on our couch as I did the first evening we met. I don’t burst into tears when I work on my boss’ newsletter every week like I did when he broke the news that I got the job. And my heart didn’t nearly burst out of my chest telling my friends about my Taylor Swift ticket victory like it did when it happened.
But I value the former so much more—taking my first bite of that croissant on the way to class, correctly selecting the customers’ items on the till, laughing over silly jokes with my partner, ticking each work task off my to-do list, sharing my life with my friends. These small daily pleasures bring me so much more joy. Every single day.
There is so much beauty in life—in taking a sip of coffee, in gazing out the window at a vivid blue sky, in striking up a conversation with a stranger, in lifting slightly heavier weights at the gym, in feeling content.
It’d be a shame to chase once-in-a-lifetime experiences and miss out on all these daily moments of joy.
Wouldn’t it?
What do you think?
I’d take the daily pleasures of life over once-in-a-lifetime experiences any day. What about you?
Would you choose a once-in-a-lifetime experience over the daily pleasures of life?
Please hit “reply” or leave a comment—I read every response and I’d love to hear from you. If you want, share this with someone who brings joy to your life. And if you think I’m absolutely bonkers for spending £660 on a concert ticket, you’re welcome to tell me that too.
Until next Friday… Stay thoughtful,
Val
Photo by Maximilian Meyer on Unsplash