As college juniors we had the chance to buy a life insurance policy that also offered a very low-interest loan against the policy's cash value. Most of us bought cars with them-- in 1980 a 6% car loan was a screamin' good deal.
But only if you borrowed the money. I ended up borrowing money from my grandparents at a lower interest rate and going my own way, but it never occurred to me to cancel the insurance policy. (Hey, I might have needed another loan someday!) Four years later I finally came to my senses (at the prompting of a friend) and killed it off. I don't remember the exact cash value but insuring the life of a single guy back then probably cost far more than the $100 check I was refunded.
Later, fresh outta college with the paychecks piling up, I didn't have any idea where to invest. My 1982 checking account was paying 10% interest but inflation was still eating us alive. People were investing in gold & jewels because "this time it's really different." Totally baffled, I called up a friendly Paine-Webber broker and ended up in a corporate bond fund. As the Fed kept raising rates to kill inflation, those monthly checks kept getting smaller.
In 1986 spouse and I got married (the best investment I ever made). We finally sat down with Business Week's mutual-fund ranking issue and noticed that Fidelity had the cheapest funds at only a 2-3% sales charge! I don't think I heard of Vanguard until well into the 1990s.
The lesson here is that LBYM and DCA can eventually overcome even loaded investments.
Told my wife I didn't know I had to ask about that part ... assumed he would have thought that was a material fact when he gave them a reference in the first place! 
