Things I Got Wrong

Author
Discussion

Al Gorithum

Original Poster:

3,663 posts

207 months

Friday 24th June 2022
quotequote all
Everyone makes mistakes, and sometimes that's the best way to learn. For a bit of fun here are some of mine:

Must have been around mid-'90's when dial-up internet was the big thing. A firm phoned me up to sell me a web site, to which I responded that the internet was never going to take off so I wouldn't be needing a web site.

I'd been in business for a couple of decades and was reasonably successful doing what I do within a relatively niche industry with people who were completely transparent and honest. I was offered a business proposition by a friend of a friend who transpired to be a proper wrong 'un. I lost 8 figures. I now work on the assumption that everyone new I meet is c t until proven otherwise.

Declined to buy Bitcoin at sub-$500 by an acquaintance because he was also a Flat Earther.

Voted for Brexit. Less less said about that the better.

Many more that I'll share when remembered.

How about you?


Seventyseven7

866 posts

68 months

Friday 24th June 2022
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Can't think of anything bowtie

Stealthracer

7,638 posts

177 months

Friday 24th June 2022
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Ignored a friend's advice "don't go anywhere near her, she's as mad s a box of frogs."

(In my defence, he was a bit of a wind-up merchant.)

vixen1700

22,665 posts

269 months

Friday 24th June 2022
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Opening a shop in the High Street I did. frown


Sheets Tabuer

18,895 posts

214 months

Friday 24th June 2022
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Ignored red flags because she had cracking norks, not once, not twice but three times.

Carrying on partying long after it was time to stop.

Partying with birds that had great norks

Essentially norks have been my downfall.

Drooles

1,361 posts

55 months

Friday 24th June 2022
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Similar to OP. A lot of my friends and I were students in the mid 90s and a mate of mine who has always been tech savvy walks into the pub with a mobile phone.

He worked for Orange (I believe Hutchison Telecom or something at the time) and he proceeded to send text messages to his workmates. We all told him to put the daft thing away and told him that he might want to consider a different job as these things were a flash in the pan.

We then dug ourselves a bigger hole by saying that nobody wants to be contacted when they’re at the pub. Who would want to be contactable at any point in the day? We go out precisely to get away from people we don’t want to talk to!

Suffice to say, most of us graduated and he continued in his chosen profession. And he has much better cars than the rest of us!

Glad he didn’t listen to us!

Countdown

39,686 posts

195 months

Friday 24th June 2022
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Sheets Tabuer said:
Ignored red flags because she had cracking norks, not once, not twice but three times.

Carrying on partying long after it was time to stop.

Partying with birds that had great norks

Essentially norks have been my downfall.
Better to have norked and lost than never to have norked at all.

Zumbruk

7,848 posts

259 months

Friday 24th June 2022
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In order of size of potential wonga lost...

Offered a half share (couple of £k) in a showjumper owned by a mate, turned it down because his previous 2 had been disasters; it went on to win some big horsey thing (HOTY?) and that half-share would have been 6 figures.

Offered a job and golden hello (in the form of lots of virtually worthless shares) in a fledgling ISP, turned it down, they were subsequently acquired by a big telecoms firm and those shares would have been worth high 6, maybe 7 figures.

Offered a job and golden hello (in the form of lots of virtually worthless shares, again) in a fledgling software firm developing a COBOL compiler for MS-DOS. Fell about laughing & turned it down on the spot. That firm now has a market cap ~£1bn and is in the FTSE 250.

CheesecakeRunner

3,706 posts

90 months

Friday 24th June 2022
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Al Gorithum said:
Declined to buy Bitcoin at sub-$500 by an acquaintance because he was also a Flat Earther.
Right back at the start of bitcoin I mined a few to see how you did it. Found it slightly amusing but decided it was pointless, so deleted it all.

I’d have paid off my mortgage a long time ago if I’d kept them.

essexplumber

7,749 posts

172 months

Friday 24th June 2022
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Selling my 1.9 GTi in 2006 for a monkey!!!

RobbieTheTruth

1,875 posts

118 months

Friday 24th June 2022
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Al Gorithum said:
Everyone makes mistakes, and sometimes that's the best way to learn. For a bit of fun here are some of mine:

Must have been around mid-'90's when dial-up internet was the big thing. A firm phoned me up to sell me a web site, to which I responded that the internet was never going to take off so I wouldn't be needing a web site.

I'd been in business for a couple of decades and was reasonably successful doing what I do within a relatively niche industry with people who were completely transparent and honest. I was offered a business proposition by a friend of a friend who transpired to be a proper wrong 'un. I lost 8 figures. I now work on the assumption that everyone new I meet is c t until proven otherwise.

Declined to buy Bitcoin at sub-$500 by an acquaintance because he was also a Flat Earther.

Voted for Brexit. Less less said about that the better.

Many more that I'll share when remembered.

How about you?
Worst "isn't Brexit bad" thread ever.

Whats on Second

732 posts

32 months

Friday 24th June 2022
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buying shares in the irish space program, sounded so convincing, new launch
centre in the dingle peninsula and commercial flights by 2033.

tribbles

3,970 posts

221 months

Friday 24th June 2022
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I helped set up an ISP in the mid-late 90s, and I was offered either 50p per subscriber per month, or a single £2.5k. Since the guy in charge had had so many failed schemes, I chose the latter

We ended up with over 3000 subscribers for about 5 years...

Petrus1983

8,516 posts

161 months

Friday 24th June 2022
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1st marriage.
2nd marriage.

I’m done.

anonymous-user

53 months

Friday 24th June 2022
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essexplumber said:
Selling my 1.9 GTi in 2006 for a monkey!!!
I can beat that, I sold one for £400 around 2003, according to the gov.uk website, it’s MoT expiring Nov 2020 on 198,667 miles…

Oh, and I turned down £100 worth of bitcoin in 2011…

Whats on Second

732 posts

32 months

Friday 24th June 2022
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Petrus1983 said:
1st marriage.
2nd marriage.

I’m done.
well, you gave it your best, we hope they fleeced you for your last bawbee.

gl20

1,121 posts

148 months

Friday 24th June 2022
quotequote all
pablo said:
essexplumber said:
Selling my 1.9 GTi in 2006 for a monkey!!!
I can beat that, I sold one for £400 around 2003, according to the gov.uk website, it’s MoT expiring Nov 2020 on 198,667 miles…

Oh, and I turned down £100 worth of bitcoin in 2011…
Well you’ve both made me feel slightly less bad about PEx’ing mine for £1k in 2000

Seventy

5,500 posts

137 months

Friday 24th June 2022
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pablo said:
Oh, and I turned down £100 worth of bitcoin in 2011…
/thread.

Johnspex

4,330 posts

183 months

Friday 24th June 2022
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When I was16 told a girl I wasn't going to see her on Sunday. She told me ' if you don't see me I'll find someone who will'. Well, she was pretty and had fabulous norks so I saw her on the Sunday. First mistake.

When I was 21 same girl said 'i cant stand it at home with Mum any longer, if you don't marry me , I'll find someone who will'.
Guess what my second mistake was!

When I was much older. I didn't shut down my emails and went out...
That was my third mistake.

Now I'm happy with another wife but very very poor.

Super Sonic

4,515 posts

53 months

Friday 24th June 2022
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Bought a Peugeot. Was the most expensive car I'd bought at the time. Lasted two months.