Rank: Elder Joined: 9/23/2009 Posts: 8,083 Location: Enk are Nyirobi
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KQ investors misled by these two common psychological traps (Hello @Obiero) Source: Investopedia Quote:
DEFINITION of 'Superiority Trap'
A psychological or behavioral trap that leads people to believe that they have superior skill in some areas. The superiority trap can be a dangerous delusion in the stock market, since investors who believe their investment prowess is superior to that of others may end up losing a lot of money. One way of avoiding this trap is through retaining a sense of humility, rather than hubris. An oft-cited example of the superiority trap is the fact that the overwhelming majority of people think they are above-average drivers, which is a contradiction in itself.
DEFINITION of 'Sunk Cost Trap'
The tendency of people to irrationally follow through on an activity that is not meeting their expectations because of the time and/or money they have already spent on it. The sunk cost trap explains why people finish movies they aren’t enjoying, finish meals that taste bad, hold on to investments that are underperforming and keep clothes in their closet that they’ve never worn. The sunk cost trap is also called the Concorde fallacy after the failed supersonic Concorde jet program that funding governments insisted on completing despite the jet’s poor outlook.
Individuals, businesses and governments fall into the sunk cost trap when they base their decisions on past behavior and a desire to not waste the time or money they have already spent, instead of cutting their losses and making the decision that would give them the best outcome going forward. People are reluctant to admit, even to themselves, that they have wasted resources on a past decision. Changing directions is viewed, perhaps only subconsciously, as admitting failure. As a result, people tend to stay the course or even invest additional resources in a bad decision in a futile attempt to make their initial decision seem worthwhile.
Life is short. Live passionately.
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