^^^^^^^
I'd echo what BlazingPedals said. There's only one person in the whole world that bicycle has to make happy. I think that it's really important to think through your intended use. If you can meet some people who are doing the kind of riding you envision, ask them what they like about their bike and what they'd do differently.
In the end it comes down to use - fit - image - budget in that order. People don't like to talk about image because it's subjective. However, if you don't feel good about yourself while you're riding your bike, you aren't going to use it very much. When people make bicycle purchasing mistakes I suspect it's because they either erred when considering their intended use or allowed budget to trump their buying process.