I don’t know about you, but before I choose a restaurant, I like to look at a lot of photos and reviews.
Even if someone else chose the restaurant — even if they say it’s their favourite restaurant and I’m going to love it — I still like to check the menu online and then look for food photos on Yelp or Google Maps, to give myself the best chance of ordering something I’ll enjoy.
[referenced url=”https://www.lifehacker.com.au/2017/10/watch-these-elaborate-video-yelp-reviews/” thumb=”https://i.kinja-img.com/gawker-media/image/upload/t_ku-large/tk68cf98zdndysnr4ore.jpg” title=”Watch These Elaborate Video Yelp Reviews” excerpt=”For over a year now, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles director Dave Green and actor Joe Cobden have been posting increasingly elaborate 12-second video reviews to Yelp. Along with some friends, they have made 41 videos about L.A. restaurants, often using special effects, stunts, and stop-motion, that recall the golden age of Vine.”]
I thought of that when I read this CNBC article about how to avoid financial mistakes:
It’s not like ordering at an unfamiliar restaurant. You can’t just blindly make decisions with financial consequences and think everything will be fine. Maybe it will be … but maybe it won’t.
CNBC’s right, of course. You can’t just blindly make decisions with financial consequences and think everything will be fine.
But they’re wrong about what it’s like to order at an unfamiliar restaurant. Even five minutes of research will tell you whether the burger is likely to be soggy or whether other diners recommend the pad thai.
[referenced url=”https://www.lifehacker.com.au/2018/03/how-to-keep-your-burger-from-getting-soggy/” thumb=”https://www.lifehacker.com.au/wp-content/uploads/sites/4/2017/06/BurgerEat-410×231.jpg” title=”How To Keep Your Burger From Getting Soggy ” excerpt=”I love a nice, juicy restaurant burger, but man, are they messy. The minute you pick one up to take a bite, half a litre of burger juice pours onto your plate, making it a terrible place to set your burger down unless you’ve got a thing for soggy buns. Here’s my personal workaround.”]
The best part? You can put that same kind of research towards your next financial decision. Whether you’re looking up photos and product reviews you can find out a lot of information — and then you can use that information to decide which car to buy, which mortgage lender to pursue, which brokerage to invest with, and more.
So the next time you plan on purchasing something more expensive than a burger and fries, do a little research first.
Because making financial decisions can be exactly like walking into an unfamiliar restaurant — if you’re the kind of person who prepares for the trip in advance and knows what they’re going to order when they arrive.
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