Monday, February 04, 2008

Every Financial Decision

Every financial decision you makes affects all your future decisions. Whether the decision is wise or foolish, it influences your future decisions.

But is that a good or bad thing? Does it make sense we allow our previous experiences to color our choices? Or should each decision be independent of the past?

I sat over the weekend talking with people about our financial mistakes. Whether every move we've made has been good or bad. And pretty much every person said it was a bad move. And most would go back in time and change things.

Would I? I had to say no. Sure it was a mistake, like purchasing our house, it's declined in value by 5%. But I like where I live. And if we hadn't bought it, we might have not bought while living in Boston. Do I think that's a mistake? I think potentially it could have been just because of the cost of renting, moving, and instability.

And yes a couple people say they regret their student loans. But they don't regret their degrees. So how do you measure if your financial decision is a mistake? You can only evaluate it in hindsight.

So while ever choice affects the next, it shouldn't stop you from moving forward and making the best decision possible with the information available.

Would you go back and make different financial choices in your life?

3 comments:

FB @ FabulouslyBroke.com said...

Yes.. I regret not being more frugal in University and possibly having eliminated the amount of debt I graduated with :(

but, live and learn :)

Anonymous said...

I made a HUGE financial mistake after clearing all of my debts, and while it didn't put me into debt again, I will live with the consequences for a long time. Do I regret it?
No, because a) every entrepreneur makes at least one big error and loses a lot of money - job done, and b) I would have spent my life wondering if my plan would have worked. I think we regret what we don't do much more than what we actually have a real go at.

Anonymous said...

I regret my degree; it makes me ineligible for Pell Grants, and probably makes me less employable today.

I went to a college financial aid office, they calculated an aid package for me, which normally would have included a sizable Pell Grant. But since my degree makes me ineligible for the grant, they said I'd have to borrow more money.