What you want VS What you need

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Posted By: David Poses

When I can't find something I need for my collection (focus, at the moment, is type cards of Highlanders/Yankees), I find myself buying all kinds of stuff I don't really want and typically end up unloading on the B/S/T at a loss. These detours include several forays into bulk T206s and various other T and E cards I am now trying to get rid of so I can pay for the stuff I really need to fill holes in my collection. Sometimes, I'll buy a duplicate example of a card I already own from my "need" list even though I am perfectly satisfied with the one I have.

I convince myself that the "want" card doesn't cost as much as a "need" card, but as soon as I buy it, remorse sets in and I remind myself that several "wants" cost more than one "need." I seem to be on a 3:1 ratio (3 cards I don't need for every 1 card I do).

What's your ratio? How do you maintain focus? Is there a trend in what you buy when you can't find something you need? I'm thinking of getting back into 50's Bowmans as a side project just because they're readily available and relatively cheap and can give me the fix I seem to need so often.