# So what is the worst Financial Mistake you have ever made?



## Chrisinmd (Nov 24, 2019)

So what is the worst Financial Mistake you have ever made? I have certainly made some big money mistakes in my past that I regret. Like running up credit cards that I could only make the min. payment on. Also bought a car that was way to expensive and could not make the payments and it got repossessed. Not good choices.

Doing pretty good now money wise so hopefully I have learned from these mistakes. So what is the worst Financial Mistake you have ever made? Hopefully people can learn from your mistakes and avoid them for themselves


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## dvcochran (Nov 24, 2019)

Paying $30k up front for a timeshare we only used 3 times. Still gives me hear burn thinking about that one.


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## Chrisinmd (Nov 24, 2019)

Here you on that mistake


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## Chrisinmd (Nov 24, 2019)

dvcochran said:


> Paying $30k up front for a timeshare we only used 3 times. Still gives me hear burn thinking about that one.



I hear you there. I attended one of those high pressure timeshare presentations. They make it sound real good at the time. Luckily I was able to resist and just take the free hotel room for 3 nights they were handing out. Where was your timeshare at?  Were you finally able to get out of it?


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## Monkey Turned Wolf (Nov 24, 2019)

When i was in college, i spent probably 50-100 bucks on bitcoin, before it got big. Figured what the hell. When i heard about it getting big, i found out all my information for it was on an external harddrive that had been lost for a couple years, couldn't find it. I'm not sure how much i could have cashed out for, but probably a lot considering it was dirt cheap when i bought it. Pains me when I think about it.


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## dvcochran (Nov 24, 2019)

Chrisinmd said:


> I hear you there. I attended one of those high pressure timeshare presentations. They make it sound real good at the time. Luckily I was able to resist and just take the free hotel room for 3 nights they were handing out. Where was your timeshare at?  Were you finally able to get out of it?


Jamaica man. We were able to sell but still lost around $5k.


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## Chrisinmd (Nov 24, 2019)

kempodisciple said:


> When i was in college, i spent probably 50-100 bucks on bitcoin, before it got big. Figured what the hell. When i heard about it getting big, i found out all my information for it was on an external harddrive that had been lost for a couple years, couldn't find it. I'm not sure how much i could have cashed out for, but probably a lot considering it was dirt cheap when i bought it. Pains me when I think about it.



That's a tough one.  Is there no record anywhere or any way you can track down the information so you can sell it?  I would think you could look up the info somewhere. No email confirmation of your purchase or anything like that?


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## Chrisinmd (Nov 25, 2019)

dvcochran said:


> Paying $30k up front for a timeshare we only used 3 times. Still gives me hear burn thinking about that one.



Never been to jamacia.  Bet it was nice but 30k seems quite expensive for 3 vacations.  I think a lot of people fall for the timeshare thing.  Hear ads's all the time on radio advertising to get you out of your timeshare so a lot of people not happy with them.


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## Deleted member 39746 (Nov 25, 2019)

kempodisciple said:


> When i was in college, i spent probably 50-100 bucks on bitcoin, before it got big. Figured what the hell. When i heard about it getting big, i found out all my information for it was on an external harddrive that had been lost for a couple years, couldn't find it. I'm not sure how much i could have cashed out for, but probably a lot considering it was dirt cheap when i bought it. Pains me when I think about it.



At least you didn't go through the pain of when it crashed.


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## Monkey Turned Wolf (Nov 25, 2019)

Rat said:


> At least you didn't go through the pain of when it crashed.


1 bitcoin is still worth around 7k.


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## Flying Crane (Nov 25, 2019)

kempodisciple said:


> 1 bitcoin is still worth around 7k.


Yeah, but isn’t that down from about $16k?  It depends on when you buy and when you sell.


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## Monkey Turned Wolf (Nov 25, 2019)

Flying Crane said:


> Yeah, but isn’t that down from about $16k?  It depends on when you buy and when you sell.


Still cheaper than when I bought in. FWIW, I think I bought half a bitcoin, so it's not like it would have been lifechanging. i just got reminded of it a few days ago, then saw this thread.


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## Flying Crane (Nov 25, 2019)

kempodisciple said:


> Still cheaper than when I bought in. FWIW, I think I bought half a bitcoin, so it's not like it would have been lifechanging. i just got reminded of it a few days ago, then saw this thread.


Yeah, I sat and watched a stock trade at about a dollar per share for a couple years, and wondered what might happen if I bought a thousand shares.  I never did.  Over a couple more years it climbed briefly to about $40 per share, before dropping again.  Shoulda woulda coulda.


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## dvcochran (Nov 25, 2019)

Chrisinmd said:


> Never been to jamacia.  Bet it was nice but 30k seems quite expensive for 3 vacations.  I think a lot of people fall for the timeshare thing.  Hear ads's all the time on radio advertising to get you out of your timeshare so a lot of people not happy with them.


This was around 15 years ago. Spectacular location but life changed for us and could not use it like we had originally planned. Something I feel happens to a lot of timeshare owners. It was a hard learned lesson.
The last time I looked the same timeshares were going for around $45k.


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## Deleted member 39746 (Nov 26, 2019)

Whats the game you play with investing.    Plenty of people have gone under through it and plenty have gotten good money out of it.


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## Yokozuna514 (Nov 26, 2019)

Financing my first car loan through a dealership at 16.75% interest.


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## Buka (Nov 26, 2019)

I bought Amazon when it only sold books. Paid 22 bucks a share. A year later, when it still just sold books I sold it for 212 a share. Nice little score, had to pay 75 grand tax on the gain.

If I had kept it, and sold it today, after taxes I would have fourteen million and change.

I wish I could say this was the only financial mistake I’ve ever made over the years.
But it ain’t.


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## Xue Sheng (Nov 26, 2019)

My biggest financial mistake.......marrying my first wife


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## JowGaWolf (Nov 26, 2019)

Chrisinmd said:


> So what is the worst Financial Mistake you have ever made? I have certainly made some big money mistakes in my past that I regret. Like running up credit cards that I could only make the min. payment on. Also bought a car that was way to expensive and could not make the payments and it got repossessed. Not good choices.
> 
> Doing pretty good now money wise so hopefully I have learned from these mistakes. So what is the worst Financial Mistake you have ever made? Hopefully people can learn from your mistakes and avoid them for themselves


School loan is probably my biggest mistake.


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## Monkey Turned Wolf (Nov 26, 2019)

JowGaWolf said:


> School loan is probably my biggest mistake.


Going to have to change my previous answer. Going to private school was my biggest financial mistake. And one that I was against.


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## Kung Fu Wang (Nov 26, 2019)

Chrisinmd said:


> So what is the worst Financial Mistake you have ever made?


I got into the stock market when Dow Jones Industrial Average was 1,500 point. I got out of the stock market when Dow Jones Industrial Average was 800 point. Today Dow Jones Industrial Average is 28,121 point.


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## marques (Nov 27, 2019)

Forex.


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## Chrisinmd (Nov 27, 2019)

Yokozuna514 said:


> Financing my first car loan through a dealership at 16.75% interest.



I did the exact same thing.  Interest rate I think if I remember right was about 16 percent as well.  Very bad deal.  Not good to be paying 16 percent on an asset that goes down in value the longer you keep it.  Lesson learned not I try to save up a small amount of money every month so I can pay cash for a new car.  Don't have to worry about the interest rate then


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## Chrisinmd (Nov 27, 2019)

Kung Fu Wang said:


> I got into the stock market when Dow Jones Industrial Average was 1,500 point. I got out of the stock market when Dow Jones Industrial Average was 800 point. Today Dow Jones Industrial Average is 28,121 point.



Yea that cost you a whole bunch of money over the years.  I did a little bit of the similar thing .  I sold some of my investment when Trump got elected.  Thought the market would go down once he took office.  Its up quite a bit since then


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## dvcochran (Nov 28, 2019)

Chrisinmd said:


> I hear you there. I attended one of those high pressure timeshare presentations. They make it sound real good at the time. Luckily I was able to resist and just take the free hotel room for 3 nights they were handing out. Where was your timeshare at?  Were you finally able to get out of it?


There was no high pressure sale; we had been planning it for a while. We could use our timeshare up to 6 times/year which is unique. Not long after we purchased it life happened. 
We still travel quite a lot and have even used the same house on Montego Bay. Go figure.


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## Chrisinmd (Nov 29, 2019)

marques said:


> Forex.



Never tried Forex before but Ive heard its really risky and difficult to make money on.  I invest in the stock market but through less risky things like index funds


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## Chrisinmd (Dec 4, 2019)

Wasted a lot of money on groceries as well before I figured out that I could use coupons. Saves you a whole lot of money if you take the time


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## pdg (Dec 9, 2019)

Biggest financial loss was deciding that family was more important to me than money.

I could still be in IT, earning a fair amount of money, getting up and commuting for over an hour every morning and not getting home until after the kids have gone to bed then use that money to guilt buy toys and frippery for them in an attempt to make up for my absence.

But I chose to be a bit skint and walk my kids to school every morning, sit down to eat with them every night and be able to do things with them in the evenings and weekends.


From a solely financial standpoint, it was a mistake.

From a life standpoint, best decision ever. It's always possible to make money somehow, but you can't make time back.


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## Flying Crane (Dec 10, 2019)

Buka said:


> I bought Amazon when it only sold books. Paid 22 bucks a share. A year later, when it still just sold books I sold it for 212 a share. Nice little score, had to pay 75 grand tax on the gain.
> 
> If I had kept it, and sold it today, after taxes I would have fourteen million and change.
> 
> ...


Any time you made money on the trade, it was not a mistake.
It just wasn’t the right choice.


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## Buka (Dec 10, 2019)

Flying Crane said:


> Any time you made money on the trade, it was not a mistake.
> It just wasn’t the right choice.



True. 

And fortunately, at the same time I initially bought it, I also bought shares of Amazon and Microsoft for the infant children of my best friends. Who knows, maybe they still have it.


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## Chrisinmd (Dec 10, 2019)

Buka said:


> I bought Amazon when it only sold books. Paid 22 bucks a share. A year later, when it still just sold books I sold it for 212 a share. Nice little score, had to pay 75 grand tax on the gain.
> 
> If I had kept it, and sold it today, after taxes I would have fourteen million and change.
> 
> ...



Nice score on the Amazon stock.  Don't beat yourself up for not holding it until today.  You made a great profit.  No way you can know what the exact high a stock will hit.  You made a nice profit and that's all you can hope for.


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## Chrisinmd (Dec 10, 2019)

kempodisciple said:


> Going to have to change my previous answer. Going to private school was my biggest financial mistake. And one that I was against.



Did your parents make you go to a private school and that's why you were against it?

Yea Private schools usually not worth the money.  Your not the first person to make that mistake


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## Steve (Dec 10, 2019)

Chrisinmd said:


> Did your parents make you go to a private school and that's why you were against it?
> 
> Yea Private schools usually not worth the money.  Your not the first person to make that mistake


Don’t parents kind of make you go to whatever school they want?


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## Buka (Dec 11, 2019)

Another mistake I made- The smartest person I know begged me to buy Bit Coin when it first came out. Begged me.

But I didn’t understand what it actually was. I’m still not sure.

But did I listen to the smartest person I know?
Nooooooo.


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## Monkey Turned Wolf (Dec 11, 2019)

Chrisinmd said:


> Did your parents make you go to a private school and that's why you were against it?
> 
> Yea Private schools usually not worth the money.  Your not the first person to make that mistake


Sorta. My plan was to go to community college for 2 years and transfer to a state school. My parents were initially onboard with that. Then my brother wanted to go to a private college for some specific music/tech degree (he's since done a 180 and now works in PR), so he did that. My mom was convinced that I would hold resentments against him/them if he went to a private school and I was stuck in a community college, so all of a sudden I had to go to a private school too.

The degree I got would have been the exact same from a state school. From a non-financial/vocational perspective it worked out though. I started up fencing then-most state colleges only have fencing clubs, not teams, so I would have probably joined either a wrestling team if they had it (and accepted walk ons) or tennis instead. More importantly, I met my fiancee during college orientation freshman year.


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## Flying Crane (Dec 11, 2019)

kempodisciple said:


> Sorta. My plan was to go to community college for 2 years and transfer to a state school. My parents were initially onboard with that. Then my brother wanted to go to a private college for some specific music/tech degree (he's since done a 180 and now works in PR), so he did that. My mom was convinced that I would hold resentments against him/them if he went to a private school and I was stuck in a community college, so all of a sudden I had to go to a private school too.
> 
> The degree I got would have been the exact same from a state school. From a non-financial/vocational perspective it worked out though. I started up fencing then-most state colleges only have fencing clubs, not teams, so I would have probably joined either a wrestling team if they had it (and accepted walk ons) or tennis instead. More importantly, I met my fiancee during college orientation freshman year.


Interesting road, there.

Life is a series of choices.  I also went to a private college, a choice that I would definitely do differently if I had the chance to do it over.  As it turned out, that school was just not the right place for me, but I stuck it out and got through it.

However, a series of events that happened because I was there got me into scuba diving which landed me in the Bahamas for a couple months after I graduated.  It also got me exposed to capoeira, which ultimately lead me to move to San Francisco where most of the good capoeira schools were located in the mid 1990s, which lead to meeting my wife at the capoeira school, and also lead to me building my life on the West Coast and taking some vacations on Maui. Being in San Francisco gave me exposure to a lot of martial arts, including some that are pretty rare in the US, including Tibetan White Crane, which is my thing now.

So even tho that school was the wrong choice for me, a lot of good things came out of the fact that I was at that school, things that likely would not have happened if I had gone to one of the other schools I had been considering at the time.

Funny how that works.


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## Chrisinmd (Dec 11, 2019)

Flying Crane said:


> Interesting road, there.
> 
> Life is a series of choices.  I also went to a private college, a choice that I would definitely do differently if I had the chance to do it over.  As it turned out, that school was just not the right place for me, but I stuck it out and got through it.
> 
> ...



Yea funny how one decision can completely change the course of your life in ways no one could have predicted.  If you had went to a different school you would have a different wife, never been exposed to capoeira and probably not be on the west coast.  You probaly can not even probably begin to imagine what you would be doing today or your life would be like if you had chosen the other option?

Same for me as well a decision or to would have changed everything


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## Flying Crane (Dec 11, 2019)

Chrisinmd said:


> Yea funny how one decision can completely change the course of your life in ways no one could have predicted.  If you had went to a different school you would have a different wife, never been exposed to capoeira and probably not be on the west coast.  You probaly can not even probably begin to imagine what you would be doing today or your life would be like if you had chosen the other option?
> 
> Same for me as well a decision or to would have changed everything


Yeah.  My life could be better than it is, or worse, or the same but different, if I had made a different decision about schools.  No way to know.  I’m happy with where I am and what I am doing, so I have to see it as a win.


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## Flying Crane (Dec 11, 2019)

Chrisinmd said:


> Yea funny how one decision can completely change the course of your life in ways no one could have predicted.  If you had went to a different school you would have a different wife, never been exposed to capoeira and probably not be on the west coast.  You probaly can not even probably begin to imagine what you would be doing today or your life would be like if you had chosen the other option?
> 
> Same for me as well a decision or to would have changed everything


There is actually another point where my life might have been drastically different.

In the early and mid 1990s, there were very few capoeira schools in the United States.  Most were in the San Francisco area and New York City.  There was a teacher in NYC who I really wanted to study with so I did seriously consider moving there, but I ultimately decided I would rather be in San Francisco.  

I ended up working in San Francisco’s financial district for a long time, including at the time of the 9-11 attack on NYC.  It stands to reason that I might have ended up working in NYC financial district, had I moved there.  So it is possible that I might have been caught in the attack and I could be dead now, or struggling with the lung injuries from breathing the pulverized concrete when the buildings came down.  I might not be here, or I might be very sick and with a short life expectancy.


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## Chrisinmd (Dec 11, 2019)

Flying Crane said:


> There is actually another point where my life might have been drastically different.
> 
> In the early and mid 1990s, there were very few capoeira schools in the United States.  Most were in the San Francisco area and New York City.  There was a teacher in NYC who I really wanted to study with so I did seriously consider moving there, but I ultimately decided I would rather be in San Francisco.
> 
> I ended up working in San Francisco’s financial district for a long time, including at the time of the 9-11 attack on NYC.  It stands to reason that I might have ended up working in NYC financial district, had I moved there.  So it is possible that I might have been caught in the attack and I could be dead now, or struggling with the lung injuries from breathing the pulverized concrete when the buildings came down.  I might not be here, or I might be very sick and with a short life expectancy.


Sounds like things most likely worked out for the best.  Would never have meant your wife in NYC and could have possibly been killed or injured on 9/11.

But you never know.  You could have been in the towers on 9/11 and become a hero helping people get out of the building.  Then got married to a great woman in NYC once you became known as a awesome and heroic guy.(not that your current wife isn't awesome im sure).

A whole lot of life is out of our control and we are influenced a great deal by chance and circumstances


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## Monkey Turned Wolf (Dec 11, 2019)

Chrisinmd said:


> Sounds like things most likely worked out for the best.  Would never have meant your wife in NYC and could have possibly been killed or injured on 9/11.
> 
> But you never know.  You could have been in the towers on 9/11 and become a hero helping people get out of the building.  Then got married to a great woman in NYC once you became known as a awesome and heroic guy.(not that your current wife isn't awesome im sure).
> 
> A whole lot of life is out of our control and we are influenced a great deal by chance and circumstances


Something to keep in mind is that most of the heroes in 9/11, who were at the site, are dead by now or on their way there with a whole host of medical complications. There was basically no way to avoid the smoke/dust that came from it, and everyone in the area was effected. All the ones that I know from it have PTSD as well, with a couple of first responders being forced by their PTSD into early retirement.


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## Steve (Dec 11, 2019)

Chrisinmd said:


> Yea funny how one decision can completely change the course of your life in ways no one could have predicted.  If you had went to a different school you would have a different wife, never been exposed to capoeira and probably not be on the west coast.  You probaly can not even probably begin to imagine what you would be doing today or your life would be like if you had chosen the other option?
> 
> Same for me as well a decision or to would have changed everything


I wonder how much really would have changed . 

I mean, details for sure, but I've come to believe that we generally end up where we being.


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## Monkey Turned Wolf (Dec 11, 2019)

Steve said:


> I wonder how much really would have changed .
> 
> I mean, details for sure, but I've come to believe that we generally end up where we being.


I think most of us would end up being the same person personality-wise, excluding unexpected trauma or death/injuries (flying crane's 9/11 post as an example). But sometimes those details matter-if you end up in a field you really like, vs. entering a field that you think you'd like but don't (and for whatever reason can't/don't switch out of it), the motivation to succeed in that career could be very different. A person's environment, which sometimes ends up being out of a person's control, can have a huge impact on their drive/motivation to succeed in many different aspects of life.


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## Chrisinmd (Dec 12, 2019)

Steve said:


> I wonder how much really would have changed .
> 
> I mean, details for sure, but I've come to believe that we generally end up where we being.



Not sure I agree not much would have changed.  Our environment we are in and circumstances we are put into have a big effect on how things turn out and the person we become.

Reminds me a this item I read once.

What We Can and Cannot Control

written by Michael Shermer 


"There is, of course, the luck of being born at all. The ratio of the number of people who could have been born to those who actually were born is incalculably large—trillions to one. Then there is the luck of being born in a country with a stable political system, a sound economy, and a solid infrastructure, rather than, say, in lower caste India, war-torn Syria, or anarchic Somalia. If you were unlucky enough to be born in one of those countries, you can hardly be blamed for a life outcome of poverty and destitution, and if you managed to get out of such a horrific environment there’s a good chance that in addition to being intelligent, creative, and a high-risk taker, you probably had some help along the way.


There is the luck of having loving and nurturing parents who raised you in a safe neighborhood and healthy environment, provided you with a high quality K–12 education, and who instilled in you the values of personal responsibility. If your family was also financially successful that’s an added bonus because one of the best predictors of someone’s earning power is that of their parents. If you were unlucky enough to be raised in an impoverished home by a single parent in an unsafe neighborhood with subpar schools, you can hardly be blamed for not waltzing your way into Harvard followed by a six-figure corporate salary with country-club privileges. If you did manage to pull yourself up by your bootstraps into such a privileged world out of such an impoverished environment, there’s a good chance that in addition to being intelligent, creative, and a high-risk taker, you had help along the way.


Then there’s the luck of attending a college where you happened upon good or inspiring professors or mentors who guided you to your calling, along with a strong peer cohort to challenge and support you, followed by finding a high-paying job or a fulfilling career. If you were unlucky enough to have never been mentored by nurturing educators, did not befriend smart and ambitious peers in your age range in school, could not land a high-paying job out of school, and never found your calling in life that could be converted into a lucrative career, the fault is not entirely in your stars; it is, in fact, more prudently found in your background, including and especially the constraining prior conditions, both biological and environmental.


Let’s not overlook the luck of being born at a time in history when your particular aptitudes and passions fit that of the zeitgeist. Would Microsoft founders Bill Gates or Amazon's Jeff Bezos be among the richest and most successful people in the world were they born in the1850's instead of the 1950's. Both are brilliant and hard working, so they would probably have been successful in any century, but at the equivalent of around $50 billion each? It seems unlikely. If you had the misfortune to have the talents and interests in a subject for which your society has next to no interest, you can hardly be blamed for that. That’s contingency."


What We Can and Cannot Control

written by Michael Shermer 


Thoughts?


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## pdg (Dec 12, 2019)

Chrisinmd said:


> Thoughts?



It appears to be written with the undertone that accumulation of wealth is the most important measure of success.

As in, it doesn't matter how many people you tread on along your way, as long as you have a bigger bank balance than the next person then you're a success.


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## pdg (Dec 12, 2019)

Chrisinmd said:


> Not sure I agree not much would have changed. Our environment we are in and circumstances we are put into have a big effect on how things turn out and the person we become.



But the problem with thinking too much about "what if" is that there's no control state, only conjecture.

Things very likely would have worked out differently had you made a different decision 20 years ago, as what you are today is the sum of every single decision you've ever made.

Looking back, you can say it might've been different if... - but at the time that decision was what it was.

Looking on any former decision as bad, or a mistake, is pointless because everything since that point was influenced by it in some way, for better or worse.

And who knows whether it would've been better or worse anyway? Some of the most valuable lessons are the result of 'bad' prior decisions.

Without going back and trying every outcome - through to today - there's no evidence either way that anything now would've been different, whether better or worse or equal.


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## Steve (Dec 12, 2019)

Chrisinmd said:


> Not sure I agree not much would have changed.  Our environment we are in and circumstances we are put into have a big effect on how things turn out and the person we become.
> 
> Thoughts?


What I was getting at is that I don’t think decisions made (not to be confused with life altering events such as death, disease, natural disaster, etc), even major decisions, really fundamentally alter most people’s lives.  I mean, I guess it depends on what we consider fundamental.  And ultimately, that’s because we tend to see what we expect, and we make decisions based on what we see.

While I would agree that environment, etc, has a huge affect on who we are as adults, I don't think that conflicts with what I'm saying above at all.  Sure.  Who you are is a function of where you were born and the advantages or disadvantages of that.  AND, given all of that, you make decisions based on what you see.  If you are cynical, opportunistic, and inclined to blame others for your misfortune, your life will reflect that because you will engineer that into your life.   For example, your career might stall because you didn’t get promoted, became resentful, and now you are a 50 year old curmudgeon who says things like, “Jane got promoted because of favoritism.  I’m way more qualified than her.” 

So, all that to say, if the question is, “how different would my life be if I didn’t move to Seattle (or whatever)?”  My answer is, “probably not very different.”


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## pdg (Dec 12, 2019)

Steve said:


> What I was getting at is that I don’t think decisions made (not to be confused with life altering events such as death, disease, natural disaster, etc), even major decisions, really fundamentally alter most people’s lives. I mean, I guess it depends on what we consider fundamental
> .......
> So, all that to say, if the question is, “how different would my life be if I didn’t move to Seattle (or whatever)?” My answer is, “probably not very different.”



See, I think differently.

I think his life would likely be very different indeed - but without a second him who didn't move there's absolutely no verifiable way to determine any outcome.

Just like how one decision probably made a very fundamental difference to my life - when I was 17 I had the choice to emigrate to Canada from the UK, but I didn't.

I mean, I could've moved there and come back after 6 months (approximately the time I met who is now my wife) and everything would've tracked roughly the same.

Or...


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## pdg (Dec 12, 2019)

Additional to above:

The other thing to think is that where I am now is where I'm 'meant' to be.

In which case, the decision I made was, in fact, not actually my decision after all.


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## Buka (Dec 12, 2019)

For those of us who have lived before, all I can tell you is I want my will to read just like my last one...

I have nothing. I owe much. The rest I leave to the poor.


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## Steve (Dec 12, 2019)

pdg said:


> See, I think differently.
> 
> I think his life would likely be very different indeed - but without a second him who didn't move there's absolutely no verifiable way to determine any outcome.
> 
> ...


Or you could have moved to Canada and led roughly the same life.


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## pdg (Dec 12, 2019)

Steve said:


> Or you could have moved to Canada and led roughly the same life.



If I'd led roughly the same life in Canada I'd more than likely either be dead or in prison


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## JR 137 (Dec 13, 2019)

pdg said:


> If I'd led roughly the same life in Canada I'd more than likely either be dead or in prison


And you’d be saying “eh?” a lot.


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## Chrisinmd (Dec 14, 2019)

pdg said:


> If I'd led roughly the same life in Canada I'd more than likely either be dead or in prison



Prisons in Canada are not to bad from what I have seen so their are certainly worse places to be in prison.  Any Latin America country the penal system is pretty much torture and your lucky to come out alive.


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## Chrisinmd (Dec 23, 2019)

Spent to much on Christmas gifts on people who did not return the favor


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## dvcochran (Dec 25, 2019)

Chrisinmd said:


> Not sure I agree not much would have changed.  Our environment we are in and circumstances we are put into have a big effect on how things turn out and the person we become.
> 
> Reminds me a this item I read once.
> 
> ...



I read elements of things we can control all throughout. It is not always easy to move forward. I agree that for some it is near impossible and for a few death may be an improvement. That is a very sad thought to me. I do not know statistically but hope it is less than 1% of people on the planet. 
In several areas the writer talks about favorable opportunity, which you would assume is a slam dunk for a person to better themselves. I imagine this only happens about 50% of the time. A Lot of people feel they are comfortable 'enough' and just live their life getting by at a level they are familiar with. To me, this is an innate quality of the person. Lacking drive or ambition. For some reason people never See that they can do better. I am not talking about being high brow and hob knobbing with the elites, but better being than their current situation. For some, current situation is more than good enough and I have zero problem with that.  
The writer makes a great point about zeitgeist. I do not think it can ever be created. Cultural/technological/economic evolution has resulted in some incredible events, just in my lifetime. I think in recent times, the greatest by far is the computer age. Looking at the breadth of it is impossible but people like Bill Gates, Robert Kahn, and Vint Cerf were enablers who have truly changed the way our world works, largely based upon timing. 

I was raised by two parents and have three siblings. We were always fed, clothed, and had a home to live in. We grew up in a culture of what would be considered manual labor. It was never presented that way; it was just our norm and I never remember resenting it. There was a big sense of taking care of the essentials and much of how we harvested/gathered the food we ate would seem archaic by todays standards (for people in the U.S.). My mother worked at a nursing home all of her adult life, starting on the floor and did about every job there you can imagine in her 33 years there. My father worked and eventually started his own business as a general contractor. Working with him in every aspect of building houses had a strong impact on me. It really helped me figure out what kind of work I did Not want to do. Again, I never resented it; I just never gravitated toward building and construction like my two brothers have. 
I am the youngest child and the only one to do any extra-curricular 'stuff' after school. This was often afforded by the fact that my older siblings were willing to provide transportation for me. 
When we were old enough to have a drivers license, we all had before/after school jobs. Along with the daily rigors and farm chores. I never resented any of it. I look back at all of it as very formative. Frankly, I never thought of myself as driven until I got out in the 'world' and saw more of how other people operated and interacted.  I am very grateful for my upbringing and what I have been able to make out of it. 

Great post and article.


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## JP3 (Dec 25, 2019)

My wife & I invested in a body-contouring machine which used ultrasound pressure waves to stimulate the bodyfat layers which lay just below the dermis (the inner layer of skin, to break-up bodyfat, metabolize the inattractive portions such as love handles (guys) and saddlebags (girls) as well as reduce outer layer belly fat.  We dropped $40K into our portion of the limited partnership for a combined 15% share.  A year later they ended up moving the machine, closed up the shop and changed what they were doing because the two 30% shareholders got crossways and couldn't decide what to do. Screwed everyone over ego.

So... turning to real estate investing now, single-family residences near to the higher-tier local college branch, which has a few really good practical/professional programs. Rent to single moms with financial aid from the guvmint is the niche.bodyfat, and generally create a more


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## dvcochran (Dec 25, 2019)

JR 137 said:


> And you’d be saying “eh?” a lot.


Unless you are in western Canada. There it is 'Que voulez-vous dire'.


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## Chrisinmd (Jan 5, 2020)

Bought a couch and then walked into the same furniture a week later and it was an additional 20 percent off


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## skribs (Jan 21, 2020)

There seems to be two major types of financial mistakes I see, even in just the first page:

Put myself into a bad situation because I made a bad decision
Didn't get myself into as good a situation as I could have if I had known the future
In the first case, the mistake leads to ruin, or to a difficult path ahead.  Things like racking up credit card debt, spending tens of thousands on a college degree which gives no marketable skills, or reaching too far on a bad investment.

The other case, you're still living comfortably, you just don't have as many luxuries.


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## CB Jones (Jan 21, 2020)

Not investing in retirement in my mid twenties.  As I'm getting closer to retirement age....I look back and call myself a dumbarse.

Had I just invested the money I spent on tobacco for 15 years.... I would have had a nice little pot of money.

I did save a friend from making a huge mistake though....he had friends trying to convince him into going in with them to purchase Iraqi Dinar.  Lol.


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## Chrisinmd (Jan 23, 2020)

CB Jones said:


> Had I just invested the money I spent on tobacco for 15 years.... I would have had a nice little pot of money..



I hear you there.  But my issue was not tobacco it was gambling and alcohol


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## Yokozuna514 (Jul 28, 2021)

CB Jones said:


> Not investing in retirement in my mid twenties.  As I'm getting closer to retirement age....I look back and call myself a dumbarse.


You are definitely not alone here and to be fair no one that wasn't upper middle class in the 80's thought of investing in retirement let alone investing period.    I am always amazed how little they teach kids about the power of investing and time so from a young age, I have always tried to explain it to my kids.

Now as they are at an age where they earn their own money and can think of things to do with it, investing comes to mind.   They have dabbled with investing and savings for a few years and can 'seemingly' understand the basics of personal finance.  

In any event, we try and make our kids better than we were.  Hopefully they listen and learn from our mistakes.


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## Argus (Aug 15, 2021)

1. Not saving and investing earlier. (Compound interest is, indeed, an incredible thing, but you have to start early. Better late than never, though).
2. Buying a ton of toys and junk I don't need.

I have made a few good decisions at least, though:

1. Not getting into debt, and never paying a single cent in credit card interest. 
Seriously, credit cards are absolutely awful. Yearly rates of like 30%? Even Warren Buffet doesn't earn returns like that!
2. Not buying money traps, like expensive cars, houses/apartments, etc. Generally living within my means.


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