LTV: Lifetime Value

　The other day, news broke that a 58-year-old had been accepted into Kyoto University, prompting reactions from X users such as, “He should make way for the younger generation,” and “No, you should never be too old to start learning.” There’s a saying: LTV: Lite Time Value. The former fits this description, while the latter amounts to risk-killing. Since it’s often said that Japanese people don’t pursue lifelong learning enough as it is, this might serve as a heartwarming story to counter that perception. If this had been a bachelor’s program starting in the third year, the story might be different. To begin with, the admission requirements are different, so this argument doesn’t hold up. I haven’t looked into the specific circumstances of his admission, nor am I particularly interested, so I haven’t followed up on it, but regarding LTV, it made me realize something again…

Let’s think about LTV. Once you reach an age where you become aware of the “harm caused by the elderly,” you can’t help but think about it. [Is there any point in spending the rest of my life on this?] If you can use what you learned or purchased when you were young even at an age when you’re considered a burden to society, then LTV can be said to have been maximized. However, if the proportion of TCO: Total Cost of Ownership—including maintenance—seems too high, the value of LTV is halved…

I keep this in mind when buying or starting something new. To put it simply, it comes down to: Is it worth the investment? My mind has completely shifted into investment mode. This is both a good thing and not-so-good thing. When I buy devices, I temporarily set LTV aside. That’s because I’ve decided to “spend the rest of my life surrounded by my favorite things.” So, unless it’s something I can’t put on my desk or something exceptionally expensive, I buy it and make a point of picking it up every now and then to admire it. Yes, this is where travel comes to mind…

If travel allows me to create memories with someone special, I’m eager to go.