I like that story about the violinist; it highlights one of the fundamental quid pro quos of life. If you want a car, you'll need to spend some money. If you want a Lambourghini, you'll need to spend a lot of money. If you want to play an instrument, you'll need to spend some time. If you want to be a virtuoso, you'll need to spend a lot of time. No gain without a price to pay.

Of course, the one major difference is that if you want more fancy cars, you just need to increase your income to cover the outgoings, whereas you can't change your overall allotment of time. If you want to be a virtuoso or a millionaire or a professional athlete or anything that requires high time and effort commitment, other areas of your life will lose out, and you have to live with that.

Me, I've worked out what are the most important priorities in my life, and spend my time accordingly on them. It means I'm comfortably off, but certainly not rich. It means I never come home to a house that'd pass the mother-in-law orderliness test. It means I don't have to schedule a "meeting" just to see my wife and kids. Perhaps I will start my own business at some stage, but only if it can be fitted in around my priorities.