How do you stop obsessing over money you already wasted?

[Anonymous]

Look up the concept of "sunk cost." in economics. You just gotta let it go.

[Anonymous]

It could always be worse.

[Anonymous]

We have a line item in our budget for this sort of thing. It includes mistakes like this or a late fee on a bill that inadvertently got overlooked, take out when we're too tired to cook, eating out when we are uninspired, etc. We call it we are busy people and sh** happens. And it's not exactly a let it go thing - I mean if late fees occur a lot or you are ordering take out everyday for a week, you need to figure things out. It's just an acknowledgement that not everything goes as planned when you have big lives and you need to budget for it. I would put this in that line item.

[Anonymous]

Sunk Cost

[Anonymous]

I have learned from my mistakes. As years went by, the mistakes got smaller and then I began to 'find' money.
Would have never happened if I had not been bothered by the mistakes, or analyzed them and corrected them.

[Anonymous]

I find it easier and happier to let go of items when I give them to nice neighbors in my Buy Nothing group rather than selling them. It’s almost like selling them cheapens them but finding a happy home is priceless. If you’re wired like me this might help. I declutter so much this way.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Over the winter, my husband and I got really excited about starting a new hobby. In our enthusiasm, we started buying all kinds of supplies so we’d be fully prepared once the weather warmed up. Unfortunately, we ended up buying a lot of the wrong things.

In his excitement, my husband unpackaged many of the items right away, and some of the others are past the return window. I tried selling them on Marketplace, but people in this hobby seem to want everything brand new and sealed, so there’s been almost no interest, even at prices that are basically giving them away.

At this point, I have a pile ready to donate, but I’m irrationally annoyed with both of us over the wasted money. Realistically, it’s only about $200, which I know isn’t life-changing, but I keep thinking about all the other things we could’ve done with that money, and it makes me so frustrated.

Logically, I know we basically spent $66 a month on “winter excitement” and hopeful anticipation, but spring me is having a hard time accepting that.

Does anyone have a quote, phrase, mindset shift, or brilliant sentence that helps you let go of money you’ve already wasted?

Just keep saying "we're lucky it was only $200 and not $2000!"

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Over the winter, my husband and I got really excited about starting a new hobby. In our enthusiasm, we started buying all kinds of supplies so we’d be fully prepared once the weather warmed up. Unfortunately, we ended up buying a lot of the wrong things.

In his excitement, my husband unpackaged many of the items right away, and some of the others are past the return window. I tried selling them on Marketplace, but people in this hobby seem to want everything brand new and sealed, so there’s been almost no interest, even at prices that are basically giving them away.

At this point, I have a pile ready to donate, but I’m irrationally annoyed with both of us over the wasted money. Realistically, it’s only about $200, which I know isn’t life-changing, but I keep thinking about all the other things we could’ve done with that money, and it makes me so frustrated.

Logically, I know we basically spent $66 a month on “winter excitement” and hopeful anticipation, but spring me is having a hard time accepting that.

Does anyone have a quote, phrase, mindset shift, or brilliant sentence that helps you let go of money you’ve already wasted?

Just keep saying "we're lucky it was only $200 and not $2000!"

+1 I've wasted way more than $200.

[Anonymous]

Years ago we had a boat (first mistake). Things on the boat kept breaking, costing thousands. We still owed something like $10k on the boat. We decided to sell it but nobody wanted it for 10k, so we PAID $2000 to sell it. On top of probably $5000 in repairs over the years, plus $1000 a year to store it.

I wish we had never bought the boat.

[Anonymous]

Look up the Buddhist concept of the “second arrow”

The first arrow (your loss of the money) causes you pain. The second arrow (how you’re reacting to that loss) is causing you suffering.

I don’t have time to write more to make this metaphor more clear, but do look it up. I often say to myself “no second arrow” when I start spiraling about something that already happened.

[Anonymous]

This is (thankfully) a small-potato mistake, OP. Personally, those are my favorite kind, because they often help me avoid bigger issues down the road!