We love things to fit in neat little boxes. But life is far more nuanced.
We tend to judge our decisions by outcomes. In her book Thinking in Bets: Making Smarter Decisions When You Don’t Have All the Facts, Annie Duke points out the faulty logic of thinking this way.
Nearly all decisions have to be made with imperfect information, making outcomes uncertain. Rarely does a single cause lead to a direct and predictable effect.
We can certainly make better decisions, and we should try. But it’s important to realize that luck and unforeseen consequences play a role in the outcome of those decisions.
Using this context, I’ll explore three financial decisions that undoubtedly accelerated my path to early retirement. But I’d be reluctant to recommend others make these same decisions.
