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- Jul 18, 2010
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Wow. Reading all of these makes me very grateful for the good sense I got from some combination of the good Lord and my parents.
Wow. Reading all of these makes me very grateful for the good sense I got from some combination of the good Lord and my parents.
Former work colleague made $100 million in 1999 day trading. Stopped working, bought a boat, sailed around Mexico, met his wife. Continued day trading. Lost $100 million in 01-02. Joined the Navy.
When I asked him if he regretted continuing day trading, he asked me: "How many people do you know that made $100 million in one year?"
I said, "The same number of people I know who lost $100 million in one year."
I guess he had a couple of good years and met his wife. I wonder if he's still at it...
Yes, for many professions, that is probably a reality. BUT.....if you can spell "Oil" (O..I..L) and show up sober, you can find decent work at any age in Texas, Oklahoma, North Dakota, Wyoming, Montana, New Mexico, Colorado, Canada, and Louisiana.
(If you have a commercial drivers license, you can sign on with a crude oil or water hauler and make near, at or over $100K per year.)
I can't remember which billionaire investor made this observation, but he said that empathic people make poor investors. What is empathy? It means that you tend to feel others emotions. But an investor hopes to observe others' emotions, and take advantage of them. One who is habitually contrary and skeptical might think, if not say, "maybe" to many things that others might believe or identify with. When you said "Also one of those 'no risk, no gain' things, which are supposed to show you have confidence in yourself and all that!" it made me think how manipulative many of these sayings that get taken for granted actually are. Society has a stake in being sure that individuals do not figure out the sources of all the lines and levers and social moods affecting them. Remember Dylan and blowing in the wind? This is probably the single most important thing that anyone might learn. Most of what we are sold as progress is actually very likely to only be flux. What was taken for granted 10 years ago is cast out today, and much of what is taken for granted today will be cast out or even made illegal tomorrow .Subtract "We sold a good portion of our taxable investment account at the depths of the market low and" - and you have our situation. We bought the vacation rental in 2003 just as prices were heating up and mortage rates were going down. We've never gotten even vaguely enough in rent to pay for what the place costs to own, and we've never gotten to stay there ourselves. Plus, like all rentals, it is a perpetual worry. One of those "it seemed like such a good idea at the time" things. Also one of those "no risk, no gain" things, which are supposed to show you have confidence in yourself and all that!
Amethyst
…...but were looking forward to a life of leisure and travel, once she retired.
Well, about a year and a half ago, her husband up and died! So, there went their dreams of spending their golden years together.
Exactly the same story with my mom. My dad died in 1974 at the age of 55 and mom told me her story many times how they wanted to spend their lives in retirement. My dad died on his way back from work and did not even get a single moment of what they had planned. We took a good care of her and never let her felt alone til she died in 2012.
I can't remember which billionaire investor made this observation, but he said that empathic people make poor investors. What is empathy? It means that you tend to feel others emotions. But an investor hopes to observe others' emotions, and take advantage of them. One who is habitually contrary and skeptical might think, if not say, "maybe" to many things that others might believe or identify with. When you said "Also one of those 'no risk, no gain' things, which are supposed to show you have confidence in yourself and all that!" it made me think how manipulative many of these sayings that get taken for granted actually are. Society has a stake in being sure that individuals do not figure out the sources of all the lines and levers and social moods affecting them. Remember Dylan and blowing in the wind? This is probably the single most important thing that anyone might learn. Most of what we are sold as progress is actually very likely to only be flux. What was taken for granted 10 years ago is cast out today, and much of what is taken for granted today will be cast out or even made illegal tomorrow .
Yup. Dying early during RE is the biggest mistake of them all. I will post on this thread if it happens to me.
Dying while at work is a lot worse, but then it does not fall under the premise of this thread: "Big mistakes in retirement".
So, that will have to be classified under "Big mistakes in OMY".
I suppose if you were thinking about being retired while at w*rk and died, it should count a little.
A nurse with a license & a few good references can always find work & pretty much name her or his hours.
A nurse with a license & a few good references can always find work & pretty much name her or his hours.
During the last 10 years, at separate times, two young nurses (mid to late 20's) rented the house next to us. Both got jobs in California with signing bonuses. I heard they were going to start at around $100K.
If good nurses (top tier?) make this kind of money, I should have pointed my daughters into nursing instead of general business.
Not only did they make bad choices for themselves - they are dragging down their adult daughter with their poor financial/retirement decisions..