Optimal Finance Daily - Financial Independence and Money Advice 3320: My Worst Money Mistakes by ESI on Lessons Learned from Financial Missteps
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Oct 17, 2025 Explore a journey through financial missteps, including early reckless spending and the pitfalls of high-fee mutual funds. Learn how personal humility can transform mistakes into valuable lessons, such as the costly choice of waiting to start saving and the risk of uninsured banks. Discover why picking individual stocks didn't pan out and how being too picky in real estate prevented greater success. Ultimately, it's a reminder that money mistakes are common and recovery is always possible.
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Costly Delay In Saving Early Career
- ESI delayed saving after grad school, spending freely on cars and clothes instead of building a budget.
- He estimates losing about five years of compounding, likely costing him hundreds of thousands to near a million dollars.
Picking Stocks And Fees Hurt Returns
- ESI tried picking individual stocks and underperformed compared to professionals and funds.
- He realized high-fee mutual funds also hurt returns before switching to low-cost Vanguard index funds.
Loosen Return Targets On Real Estate
- Be willing to accept slightly lower cap rates when buying properties instead of holding out for perfect returns.
- ESI notes accepting 9% instead of 10% could have doubled his property count and accelerated retirement.
