Welcome to Wise & Wealthy: A weekly newsletter full of proven ideas to become smarter and wealthier. I send this every Monday.
#110 – February 5, 2024
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Wise: Living somewhere warm
For the longest time, I had this dream of living in Spain. Who doesn’t want to live somewhere warm and close to the beach?!
Well, me.
I gave it a try in 2022 and spent six months living in Spain. I learned a lot. And I even met my girlfriend there.
But I realized that living somewhere warm was just a dream.
I got used to the weather. And it made me realize that I was complaining too much about the weather in The Netherlands.
Since I got back, I’ve been enjoying my hometown a lot more.
This is literally the oldest cliche in the book, but home is truly where the heart is.
As you go about your day, don’t forget to appreciate your town, no matter where you’re from.
↳ Why I Killed Off My Naive Dream of Living Somewhere Warm
Wealthy: Investing mistakes
I started investing in stocks when I was 19. Since then, I’ve literally made every mistake in the book.
I’ve also bought and sold nearly every financial instrument you can think of: Common stocks, options, futures, ETFs, mutual funds, gold, bitcoin, ethereum, and more.
The first chancellor of the German Empire, Otto von Bismarck, probably would’ve called me a fool. Because in those early years, I only learned from my own mistakes. Bismarck famously said:
“Fools learn from experience. I prefer to learn from the experience of others.”
Learn from my experience. In my other new article, I share 25 investing mistakes I’ve personally made.
Here’s my most important one: Being impatient.
Most of the mistakes in this list, I made a handful of times. But this one, I made many times! Because it’s so hard to be patient. But trust me, patience pays off BIG.
↳ 25 Investing Mistakes I Made That You Can Easily Avoid
One interesting thing
I recently read Courage Under Fire by Navy Vice Admiral James B. Stockdale. Stockdale was the most senior naval officer held captive in Hanoi, North Vietnam during the Vietnam War.
During his captivity, he relied on Stoicism to endure. In his fascinating book, he wrote:
“To live under the false pretense that you will forever have control of your station in life is to ride for a fall; you’re asking for disappointment. So make sure in your heart of hearts, in your inner self, that you treat your station in life with indifference, not with contempt, only with indifference.”
We don’t control the cards that life deals to us. Simply take your cards as they come.
Thanks for reading! I hope you found this edition of Wise & Wealthy useful.
All the best,
Darius
Join the 5-day Financial Freedom Challenge
I created a 5-day email course you can do alone or together with a group. It’s called the Financial Freedom Challenge. And it will help you to gain control over your finances.
Most people try to calculate their way out of poor finances. But money problems aren’t rational. They’re emotional. Manage your emotions well, and you’ll manage your finances better.
How to Unlock the Financial Freedom Challenge
You can join the challenge for free. For five days, you’ll receive a short email with a small challenge that inspires you to improve your relationship with money.
I highly recommend sharing it with your friends/family so you can go through the program together. It helps bring perspective. And it’s more fun that way too.
Join here for free: dariusforoux.com/financial-freedom