If you have never had your limits tested, should a big loss occur, how will you know you can reach deeply enough into yourself to find a sense of identity that transcends your financial status? Or are you just a 30 percent loss away from feeling like a ’failure’ and ending up in my psychotherapy consulting room?
This is why I argue for knowing your own personality tendencies and seriously considering them in your online investment decision making. If you already know that the terrible anxiety of financial loss would be more than you can mentally and emotionally tolerate, this concern must be weighed heavily in the risks you take.
– Steven Hendlin, The Disciplined Online Investor
