Comments on: The Power of Balanced Thinking http://www.thesimpledollar.com/2011/02/08/the-power-of-balanced-thinking/ Financial talk for the rest of us Sat, 16 Feb 2013 01:14:45 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.5.1 By: Amanda http://www.thesimpledollar.com/2011/02/08/the-power-of-balanced-thinking/#comment-938243 Amanda Thu, 10 Feb 2011 00:51:07 +0000 http://www.thesimpledollar.com/?p=6636#comment-938243 I doubt Trent reads his comments, but for anyone else interested, Barbara Ehrenrich has written a great book on this subject: Bright-sided: How the Relentless Promotion of Positive Thinking Has Undermined America.

In particular she has focused on how this ‘positive thinking’ has invaded business. Companies spend big bucks sending workers to positive thinking seminars with no proof of results. They’re also using ‘happy thoughts’ incentives such as awards rather than actual increases in pay or bonuses for employees.

]]> By: Nick http://www.thesimpledollar.com/2011/02/08/the-power-of-balanced-thinking/#comment-938140 Nick Tue, 08 Feb 2011 20:59:40 +0000 http://www.thesimpledollar.com/?p=6636#comment-938140 Remember that old saw, “Plan for the worst, hope for the best.”

]]> By: Telephus44 http://www.thesimpledollar.com/2011/02/08/the-power-of-balanced-thinking/#comment-938123 Telephus44 Tue, 08 Feb 2011 19:38:07 +0000 http://www.thesimpledollar.com/?p=6636#comment-938123 I find this post slightly odd, because most PF people tout an excessive amount of negative thinking. Trent’s post contains nothing “positive” about saving for retirement. We’re supposed to save an emergency fund in case of job loss, disability, medical bills. PF sites seems to focus on what you can do to reduce risk and approach most situations with a “negative thinking” mindset. How many times does someone write in and want to buy a house, and you only hear the negative – save up for a huge down payment so you’re not underwater, save up living expenses for a year in case you lose your job, save up for all of those extra maintainence costs…. Those concerns are all coming from negative thinking.

I think it’s important to pay attention to risk, but I also think it’s important to engage in some positive thinking and risk taking.

And as a side note – my retirement portfolio is heavily based in stocks. This isn’t “purely positive thinking” – this is because I’ve done my research.

]]> By: lurker carl http://www.thesimpledollar.com/2011/02/08/the-power-of-balanced-thinking/#comment-938100 lurker carl Tue, 08 Feb 2011 14:31:44 +0000 http://www.thesimpledollar.com/?p=6636#comment-938100 Isn’t “balanced thinking” the same as being realistic? Going from zero to marathon is a realistic goal but not within 3 months. Failing that goal doesn’t mean it’s impossible, it just takes longer than using an arbitrary event to pinpoint your deadline. Experience often tempers overly positive or negative thinking.

]]> By: Mary http://www.thesimpledollar.com/2011/02/08/the-power-of-balanced-thinking/#comment-938098 Mary Tue, 08 Feb 2011 14:18:18 +0000 http://www.thesimpledollar.com/?p=6636#comment-938098 Good points. I like seeing the other side of the coin when it comes to too much positive thinking, as well as seeing negative thinking isn’t all bad either. I find that negative thinking does get me motivated about things far more than positive thinking. I guess bad experiences for me make me not want to relive those ever again. An example for me is the time a year ago that I was working a minimum wage job after college that was nowhere near in my field of expertise (due to the economy), after a mediocre effort from my Bachelors degree. It made me decide to go back to school and be serious about my education. I didn’t want to be in that boat ever again. I now focus on my studies relentlessly, and it also applies to other areas of my life too. I make time to work out, I have an emergency fund…just from one negative experience.

]]> By: Alexandra http://www.thesimpledollar.com/2011/02/08/the-power-of-balanced-thinking/#comment-938097 Alexandra Tue, 08 Feb 2011 14:14:23 +0000 http://www.thesimpledollar.com/?p=6636#comment-938097 The best strategists and managers never make up their plan B on the fly. When entering a situation, they have already thought out plan A, B, C and even D if they’re extra careful. Thinking of what can go wrong is the first step to being prepared for it. Great post.

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