When people first started blogging, back in the Stone Ages, it was a lot of personal stories. Personal stories still exist but they’re more often the minority of blog articles these days.
I discovered a great one from back in the day (ok, it’s from August 2019) from Financial Pilgrimage:
A Young Family’s Roadmap to Building Generational Wealth [Financial Pilgrimage] – “Reflecting on my family’s story, we’ve made many mistakes. In our late 20s, we thought we were doing everything right, but in hindsight, there was a lot we were doing wrong. Being able to rebound at age 30 was tough, but not as tough as it could have been. Yet, despite our challenges, we also did a few things right.” It’s a familiar story (owned a home but weren’t house poor, had car payments but not crazy, and $50k in student loans – very relatable) with some good advice applicable to anyone.
Is Having Too Many Choices (Versus Too Few) Really the Greater Problem for Consumers? [Behavioral Scientist] – “Afew decades ago, the idea that there could ever be too much choice was, for some, a controversial claim. It ran against cultural narratives—especially in the United States—and classic economic theory that assumed having more options was always better than having fewer. A larger assortment of alternatives, so conventional wisdom went, gave each of us a better shot at finding something that better satisfied our preferences. And, if any of the additional options didn’t appeal to us, we were free to ignore them.” Analysis paralysis!
The Witch of October Is Here: Remember Short-Term Pain = Long-Term Progress [Enterprising Investor] – “The month of October strikes fear in the hearts of many Wall Street veterans — and for good reason. Over the last 123 years, 7 of the 10 worst days in US stock market history occurred during this seemingly haunted 31-day stretch. But there’s nothing supernatural about these October scares: They are the remnants of the 19th century agricultural financing cycle. During the 1800s, farmers harvested and shipped their crops to market in the fall, paying for the operation with large withdrawals from their local banks. These banks, in turn, withdrew funds from larger New York City banks and trusts to replenish their reserves, which made Wall Street financial markets especially vulnerable to panics. Even after the United States transitioned to an industrial economy and re-established a central banking system in the early 1900s, the memories of past Octobers seem to have conditioned investors to erupt in panic out of habit. October 2022 may be just the latest manifestation.” That is fascinating to learn but the actionable gem of the post is this one – “In the meantime, we need to steel our nerves, rebalance our portfolios, and trust that the pain we suffer now will be rewarded in the future.”