we tell ourselves stories to fill in the gaps of what are effectively blind spots. - Morgan Housel

Before we go further we should define what optimism is. Real optimists don’t believe that everything will be great. That’s complacency. Optimism is a belief that the odds of a good outcome are in your favor over time, even when there will be setbacks along the way.

To grasp why people bury themselves in debt, you don’t need to study interest rate: you need to sturdy the history of greed , insecurity and optimism.

This is true in personal finance, where you’re told to have a six-month emergency fund and save 10% of your salary.