I don't think I'm really the target audience for this article, but I can still weigh in on it anyway. To be honest, I don't have any goals. I never have—in the sense that I want to somehow reach a portfolio size of x by the age of y. It all happened by chance and wasn’t planned, and I didn’t—and don’t—want to stress myself out with any goals. Maybe that’s a mistake and a lack of ambition.
I’m also generally pretty pessimistic and plan for worst-case scenarios, though I’m happy to be pleasantly surprised.
So I don’t imagine what I’ll do if my portfolio is worth a million; instead, I think about what if there’s a massive crash tomorrow and my portfolio drops to half its value or even lower. I’ve already had six-figure losses within a few days and handled it just fine. That might not have been the case if I’d been desperately looking up, hoping to quickly reach the next 100k.
So I don’t know if I’ll ever reach a million or more, and I don’t expect to. To me, those are unhatched eggs—things I can worry about if they actually come to pass.
But ambitious young people with drive and focus are definitely something we could really use these days to move forward. You can’t really expect much from old fogies like me.
I’m also generally pretty pessimistic and plan for worst-case scenarios, though I’m happy to be pleasantly surprised.
So I don’t imagine what I’ll do if my portfolio is worth a million; instead, I think about what if there’s a massive crash tomorrow and my portfolio drops to half its value or even lower. I’ve already had six-figure losses within a few days and handled it just fine. That might not have been the case if I’d been desperately looking up, hoping to quickly reach the next 100k.
So I don’t know if I’ll ever reach a million or more, and I don’t expect to. To me, those are unhatched eggs—things I can worry about if they actually come to pass.
But ambitious young people with drive and focus are definitely something we could really use these days to move forward. You can’t really expect much from old fogies like me.
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@Solitair Setting goals also means consciously choosing not to chase after some utopian fantasy. Instead, it means looking at what’s realistic and what’s good for you.
One goal could also be to keep sleeping well—even if your portfolio takes another six-figure hit.
One goal could also be to keep sleeping well—even if your portfolio takes another six-figure hit.
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•@DonkeyInvestor There are so many things that can ruin a good night's sleep. You have to get up to pee several times, the bed might collapse, the neighbor's dog might start barking in the middle of the night, and so on...
Better not count on it
Better not count on it
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@Solitair Thanks for your comment.
Ever since I can remember, I’ve set goals for every area that’s interested me in some way, and that gives me energy along the way, regardless of whether the goal is achieved or not. I always like to have a “why” behind what I’m doing.
And my investments are now generating significantly more than my savings rate adds to my net worth. This has made me start to wonder how long that actually makes sense. We’ll see how it goes, but having thought it through and made that decision gives me energy right now, because I have my goal—using some of my assets to live on—right in front of me, rather than 30 years down the road.
Ever since I can remember, I’ve set goals for every area that’s interested me in some way, and that gives me energy along the way, regardless of whether the goal is achieved or not. I always like to have a “why” behind what I’m doing.
And my investments are now generating significantly more than my savings rate adds to my net worth. This has made me start to wonder how long that actually makes sense. We’ll see how it goes, but having thought it through and made that decision gives me energy right now, because I have my goal—using some of my assets to live on—right in front of me, rather than 30 years down the road.
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@Solitair Cheer up! 😉
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