Investment regrets: I’ve had a few, so how about you?

Regrets can eat away at us if we let them, and can be especially painful for investors.

The “what ifs” in our minds when thinking about missed investment opportunities may include countless holidays, early retirements and flashy lifestyle spending.

We missed those riches. So we must suck it up, and view past mistakes as learning opportunities.

My job means I’ve been lucky to be able to speak with financial planners, analysts and economists almost every day for the past 20 years.

After all those interviews I still have no idea where shares, property and other assets will be a year from now.

Neither do the countless experts who say they do know – it’s a crazy ride for everyone.

Recognising your investment regrets will help you grow financially. Here are my four biggest.

1. NOT STARTING SOONER

This is the number one investment regret of most people, especially those nearing retirement who wish they pumped more into their super earlier in life to give compound interest more years to work its magic.

But it’s not just about super. For property, shares and other assets, those who begin the earliest end up the richest.

I didn’t start serious investing until my early thirties, and now regret that it wasn’t my late teens. I’ll make sure my children start investing sooner than their dad did.

Anyone who’s invested money has probably had regrets. Dwelling on them is dangerous.

2. BUYING BITCOIN TOO LATE

Back in the days when it cost 10,000 bitcoins to buy a couple of pizzas was the time to buy the cryptocurrency. One bloke famously did that 11 years ago – that bitcoin is now worth half a billion dollars – and he reportedly says he has no regrets.

Buying bitcoin five years ago would have increased your wealth tenfold, even after accounting for last weeks’ crypto crunch that smashed most digital currencies.

I bought into bitcoin late, am currently underwater, but I’m enjoying the crazy ride and this personal experiment in greed and fear.

3. BORROWING STUPIDITY

Aggressive investors borrow to buy shares, and it works well when interest rates are low and share prices are rising.

But I took it too far back in the Global Financial Crisis in 2008 and 2009. Not only did I used borrowed money to buy shares, I used borrowed money to buy the borrowed money.

This double-gearing strategy was aimed at taking advantage of a sharemarket downturn that went much deeper than most experts forecast, and took me a decade to get back to square one. Never again.

4. NEVER OWNING A BUSINESS

The biggest financial successes I’ve seen have been business owners who took entrepreneurial risks early and multiplied their wealth many times over.

I was too afraid by the statistics showing a majority of businesses fail in their first year, and instead stuck with shares and property. Big mistake, big regret, but maybe I’ll change that in the future.

Now it’s time to ask yourself about your own biggest investment regrets.

But instead of dwelling on them, treat them as lessons.