If you were to begin again what would you do different?

[jank]

I know there are alot of old expereinced heads here who have been around the block a few times in relation to all things regarding investing and saving.

So as a young would be investor who is just starting out with investing here is my question.
Given all the years experience you have what is the ONE thing you would do different?

 

[Smurf1976]

1. Remember that the markets will still be there tomorrow. There's no need to rush in and lose a lot in the process.

2. Leverage works both ways. It magnifies your gains and your losses. Don't over leverage.

 

[medicowallet]

1. Recognise that in an awful lot of circumstances, history repeats itself / trends are maintained.

2. Have a longer engagement to my wife.

3. Proof read titles before posting

 

[tech/a]

2. Have a longer engagement to my wife.

Yeh

That would definately help my trading!!

 

[notting]

Get a partner to do the opposite of everything I do ie if I go long they go short, if I go short they go long.
Go totally gun ho at everything I think looks good trusting my instincts, my wiser than thou intelligence and perception etc using all my money.
At the end of the 18 months, marry the partner for their money and be grateful for the lesson.

Alternatively, if your too unacceptable as a character to get a partner. Set up a good day trading account, then get a genius computer programmer to rig your computer so when ever you make a buy it sells and when ever you make a short it buys. The computer shows up as if it is buying when you buy and selling when you sell. Your bank accounts also reflect this as if your buying as you buy etc.
Then have a hypnotist brainwash you so you cannot remember that your computer has been reversed like this.

In 18 months the hypnoses runs out you are lifted out of despair and you find you are in fact the greatest trader that ever lived!!

 

[hedgetrader]

More testing, and patience.

I only trade forex so this is a bit specific.

After trading forex for a while and losing some money, I stopped trading and started designing automated systems.
I decided to work full time(all the time) to find/make systems that worked autonomously with stable results. 2 years later I have a couple of systems that actually work. I have designed and tested 1000's of systems and have multiple VPS's running many forward tests.
For me 2 years of coding, simulations and testing have paid off in a big way. That is the one thing I did right.

 

[sptrawler]

Buy quality, just have patience and wait for the opportunity.
The once in a life time buying opportunity seems to come around every 2 - 5 years.

 

[Julia]

1. Not get married. Did it twice and it cost me significantly financially both times.

2. Learn about the sharemarket earlier. I was too biased toward property in the early days.

3. Be quicker to adopt the maxim "It's not being wrong that's the problem, but how long you stay wrong".

4. Be extremely selective about from whom you take advice.

 

[Glen48]

Give 10 k to two girls one to invest and one to spend and marry the one with big breasts ..
Do you get another belly button or is that only for born again Christians
Trouble is if you are say 18 could talk to some one 60 would you listen or say this time its different .
Nothing repeats like history as we are about to find out when the next depression is well under way.
Marriage either stay married or don't' my Ex cost us about 2 m and we both are living on the date's from the calender now.
We are about to enter a new phase of money making and do things so stupid no one will believe in 50 yrs time.
I still think luck plays a big part like Brad Pitt went with his mate to help him get an acting job Brad got the job his mate lose out.

 

[Gringotts Bank]

LOL notting.

If I were to begin again what would I do differently? Hmmm...not start perhaps.

 

[tinhat]

I'd be a lot more judicious about how I handled money. Don't spend on utter crap, pay stupid prices for booze in night clubs and instead save a little more. If I could speak with myself from twenty years ago, I would tell myself to just go with the flow more and never miss an opportunity to have sex.

 

[Smurf1976]

Recognise early that 99.9% of young people will blow a relative fortune on something. Cars, women, out all night partying, dud investment ideas and on it goes.

First thing, make sure you don't get physically hurt in a permanent manner during any of this. Don't get yourself a criminal record either (I don't have one by the way, just saying).

Second thing, have some fun. Most of those who don't go out partying etc are still going to blow their money on something of little or no lasting value. The only real exceptions would be the minority who either buy real estate or who make other successful investments at an early age. The rest end up blowing the money on something.

If I could rewind the clock then I'd party harder. Seriously, that's exactly what I'd do. May as well have some fun given that I ended up blowing every cent I earned in my first few years working anyway.

 

[joea]

In life, get a mentor who has been around the block.
In sport follow your gut feeling.
In health, an active body is a happy body.
Always have a dog, it brings out the best in you. Always walk the dog - Thinking time!!
On a career, think integrity, respect and fairness.
On politics. Don't read it!
On people, everybody is equal.
On the stock market, join ASF to sort the "the chaff from the wheat".
On family, they are your greatest asset.
joea

 

[howmanyru]

What would i do differently financially? Get a real education after leaving high school - Man, school just brain washes us to conform, you wont be successfull if you follow the herd. The real information you need is not taught in schools. Hang around people who know the stock market & realestate, TAKE RISKS at a young age, when you have time to make mistakes and recover.

 

[So_Cynical]

I'd be a lot more judicious about how I handled money. Don't spend on utter crap, pay stupid prices for booze in night clubs and instead save a little more. If I could speak with myself from twenty years ago, I would tell myself to just go with the flow more and never miss an opportunity to have sex.

Ill go with the above and add buying BHP and CBA way back when in the 80's, these two stocks in particular because they really were no brainers...just $500 a year in each and id be laughing now.

 

[IFocus]

1. Learn about a trading method

2. Test it and any other method to death manually or other wise

3. Sim trade for 6 months

4. Start with a size able account

 

[sptrawler]

Recognise early that 99.9% of young people will blow a relative fortune on something. Cars, women, out all night partying, dud investment ideas and on it goes.

First thing, make sure you don't get physically hurt in a permanent manner during any of this. Don't get yourself a criminal record either (I don't have one by the way, just saying).

Second thing, have some fun. Most of those who don't go out partying etc are still going to blow their money on something of little or no lasting value. The only real exceptions would be the minority who either buy real estate or who make other successful investments at an early age. The rest end up blowing the money on something.

If I could rewind the clock then I'd party harder. Seriously, that's exactly what I'd do. May as well have some fun given that I ended up blowing every cent I earned in my first few years working anyway.

Yes smurph, I still regret not buying that HG 350 Monaro when I was an apprentice. sigh

 

[Mistagear]

Yes smurph, I still regret not buying that HG 350 Monaro when I was an apprentice. sigh

I still regret selling the HG 350 Bathurst, the L34 Torana, the ex HDT XU1, the ex Brock VN Commodore 12hr car, the 2 Group C Commodores I ran in the 80's.
I regret not being nicer to my ex-wife prior to my car collection being sold, but most of all i regret not taking up an opportunity to move to Britain to race. At least I kept #7
Whoops, sorry this is a trading site, not a car forum....
What I would do differently is... spend the last decade on a treadmill while I trade

 

[Wysiwyg]

I still regret selling the HG 350 Bathurst, the L34 Torana, the ex HDT XU1, the ex Brock VN Commodore 12hr car, the 2 Group C Commodores I ran in the 80's.

Do you know of David Bowden? He collects those classics.

 

[Wysiwyg]

There were two people that influenced my life negatively and I would not meet them again. People really need to let go and move on.

Trading wise I would have learned at an early stage about position sizing and "when to sell". When to sell is the trick.