A hungry donkey walks into a barn in search of food. He finds two identical haystacks at opposite ends of the barn. The donkey stands in the middle of the barn between the two haystacks, not knowing which one to choose. Hours, then days go by, but the donkey just can’t seem to make up his mind. Unable to decide, he dies of starvation.
This is my version of a story that originated with Aristotle and was later reinterated by the French philosopher Jean Buridan.
I would argue that the financial world is full of donkeys. You might say politics more so but I’m not a very political person. People know they need to save for retirement but get hung up on the details of doing so. They end up not saving. You might know you need insurance but which type, kind, policy, amount is right for you. So you go without. Congress needs to pass a bill to address a big picture problem in America, they just can’t seem to decide on the minor details. They become stuck in the middle. You want to purchase a new tv so you go online to research the perfect tv. Thinking you know what you want, you go to the store to find that they have two tvs with identical features for the same price. Unsure of which is better to go home to continue your research. Maybe you buy a tv a few months later.
What do all of these examples have in common? They didn’t take into account the consequences of not deciding. For the donkey it meant death. For the person not saving for retirement it might mean a lower standard of living and/or a drain on their family and society. For Congress, the problem persists for much longer than necessary, who knows how many people become affected by it.
- What have you been putting off that you know needs to get done?
- Are you dealing with cognitive dissonance?
- Do you know you need insurance?
- Need to save more in an emergency fund or for retirement?
Or should the question I ask be..Are you prepared for the consequences of procrastination?
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