There are so many things that money can buy, but they say "money can't buy happiness."
That phrase actually first came from Rousseau in 1750:
"Money can buy material things, but real happiness must be truly earned."
People end up wasting their money for a whole host of reasons. Some reasons being they don't know how to manage it, budget accordingly, or because they think they're buying into something that will make them happy.
Redditor WhyIsItSoBig wanted to know:
"What was your biggest waste of money?"
Some of these may shock you.
Loss in stocks.
"A friend of mine and I a few years ago decided to have a competition. The idea was basically to see who could make the most money in 1 year investing only in penny stocks... long story short, we both lost 2 grand."
"We each invested 2k to begin with. At the end of the year we had both pretty much lost all of it."
- mejok
"Only 2 grand? I'd call that a win."
- Butgut_Maximus
"I lost 30k in 1 week trading options."
- etrimmer
"Well, I'm down $12k this week on options. I feel your pain."
- Plead_thy_fifth
An expensive trip gone wrong.
"Going to NYC from LA just to be dumped by my ex."
- UglyCuteHandsomeBoy
"Well I went from Argentina to NYC to find out that my ex was cheating on me if that makes you feel better."
- Intrepid_Ad_1470
They're a scam.
"Pay to win mobile games."
- bawjaws2000
"Me too, sadly.. $3000+ on Game of War while I was in high school. I really could've used the money in Uni lol."
"Sad thing is that it wasn't nearly enough to remain competitive. I was more like a tuna than a whale."
- DepressionNoodles
"Yea my stepdad probably put $30k into that game, that's how much it takes to remain top of the kingdom. His rival was some Chinese guy who spent an equal, if not larger sum. Mind you this is just one of like 100-200 servers you can play on. This game pulls in insane amounts from whales, what's even crazier is it's just a reskin of the thousands of games just like it. Took almost no creativity and minimal effort to gain millions…"
"He managed to get it all back by lying to customer support and giving some bogus excuse. However he can no longer use that apple account for purchases, he's an android user now lol."
- Educational_Rope1834
That school loan debt was not worth it.
"A Masters degree that cost $130k and got me a fantastic starting salary of $34k….."
"I studied architecture and 8 years out me and my peers are all around $70-75k now. It's a really slow creep up from here. Architects here typically don't break six figures until they either go into management or become consultants (both are different jobs entirely, but related to the architecture process)"
- muffin_stump
"My gf has $170k of 6% student loans and makes $45k a year doing occupational therapy. It's sickening to crunch the numbers and try to figure out how to get out from under that debt. Hopefully in 10 years it will be forgiven. Hopefully."
- tjmiles2
"My masters cost $96k but since I had to move back home after getting it to be a caretaker for my mom, I was underemployed for almost 5 years and the payments I made couldn't keep up with interest, so now it's sitting at $122k. I finally got a job and for the last five years I've been making $34k. I swear the PSLF better work in five years or I don't know what I'm going to do."
- monty_kurns
"This is one of the reasons I direct every college bound kid I know to the BLS occupational outlook page so they can figure out what sort of money they can expect to earn with the degree they will be buying. College is an investment and you have got to do the math upfront."
- According_Surround_7
The Strangest Superstitions People Actually Observe | George Takei’s Oh Myyy
The world can be a superstitious place. If you've ever knocked on wood or thrown salt over your shoulder then you've run into one or two throughout your life...Addiction costs a lot money.
"Pills. I coulda bout a house while in my addiction. I've been clean 5 years and it kills me to know how much I blew on a couple hours of numbing."
- Hailsyea4
"I'm a recovering alcoholic and also recovering bulimic. I would easily spend 50 to 100 a day on food just to puke up. I also spent 100's a week on alcohol. I do regret it, I could have a way better financial situation but if I wasn't spending money on those things, I probably would have just found something else to waste money on. The best thing was figuring out why I was doing those things, which also made me understand humans a lot more. I hid my habits, very well, until I just didn't care anymore."
"The money I wasted, wasn't wasted. The knowledge and patience I have for people has highly increased. And at least now I know to find the problem creating problems instead of making it worse. I'm sure a good therapist would have cost more. Even if not, it happened, I learned a lot and it's part of who I have become."
- jeskimo
Weddings shouldn't break the bank.
"Getting married."
- mugen1337
"I'm going to a wedding in January and whilst there's little to no cost for me, I'm aware the bride and groom have spent upwards of £20k on the entire ordeal."
"They're both in very well-paying jobs, and it's their special day so they do them, but the sheer thought of it hurts my soul."
- According_Surround_7
"Junk food. I once calculated if I took most of the money I've ever spent on junk food (chips, pastries, soda, candy, etc) and invested it in an index fund over the 40 years of my adult life, I'd have nearly a million dollars today. Lose the empty calories, momentary pleasure, health issues. I'd be healthier and wealthier."
- ErikCavey
"This is why I'll never do it with alcohol. I only drink on the weekend too, and I still never want to know the number."
- duffman13jws
"What's wealth without happiness. Chips = happiness."
- MrRogersAE
"Well when you're looking at it from their perspective, a million dollars is a hell of a lot better than a bag of chips..."
- T-Jack
"Over 40 years, literally your entire adult life, no treats your entire adult life to have more money as a senior, your talking 40 years of sacrifice for 20 years a bit wealthier. There's more important things in life than being wealthy when I'm old."
- MrRogersAE
Financial stress due to low funds or debt can cause a whole host of mental and physical problems. Often, it leads to unhealthy coping skills that might actually put you further into financial woes.
If you can avoid it, don't put yourself in a situation that might backfire in the future. It could lead to more harm than good.
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