Sometimes I think I'm quite clearheaded about money, but then I do something that completely destroys my tenuous grasp at credibility.
A few months back, a good friend of mine was sick of her job and we had a good long talk about it. She was in tears, her boss was horrible and she made peanuts - especially compared to the revenue she was bringing in. She was constantly broke, disrespected and overworked. It honestly was a terrible job, I truly felt sorry for her. In the midst of the tears she mentioned she would need 6k to start her own business and of course, being the giant softie that I am, I immediately offered to lend it at 0% interest.
Whoops... talk about stupid impulsive decisions. I think twice about the price of cucumbers and here I was, blatantly offering 6k without even thinking about the methods of repayment. Okay, she's a dear friend, but damn, I immediately regretted saying that.
I could afford to lend it to her, but no matter what, don't lend to friends and family! Especially if they're more spendy than you are. I was very lucky that she ended up needing well over 10k after some calculations and that gave me an easy escape. She ended up borrowing from a business connection.
The reason why I'm so glad I didn't lend it, even if I can afford to lend 6k or even 10k, is because she's not as frugal as I am. For the past few months I've watched her spend literally thousands on things she definitely didn't need. No, I am not kidding. Purebred puppy, getting nails done, drinks and restaurants, clothes, fun days out. Not that I begrudge her any of these things, she enjoys them and she's had a tough time. But she's indebted to someone and she just treats the minimum payments as just another bill. It just made my hackles rise - what if I'd lent her the money and I'd seen her blow cash like that instead of repaying? I'm not sure our friendship would be the same...
What about you guys, any facepalm-worthy generosity/stupidity?