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Chapter 7 of 11 in the Personal Finance Curriculum.

Chapter 7

Investor Psychology

Understand the biases and emotions that derail smart investors.

What you'll learn

  • How cognitive biases affect investment decisions
  • Why panic is the real portfolio killer
  • The difference between storytelling and number-crunching in investing
The Psychological Toll

The Psychological Toll

Article

Surviving the 20% drop - the psychology of market crashes.

8 min read
Intermediate

Common money biases: loss aversion, herd behaviour and recency

Short Lesson

Recognise the three biases that most often push ordinary investors into selling low and buying high.

Beginner
Storytellers and Number Crunchers

Storytellers and Number Crunchers

Article

Which type of investor are you? Two approaches to making decisions.

7 min read
Intermediate

Why you are your portfolio's biggest risk (behaviour beats fund choice)

Short Lesson

Understand why investor behaviour, not fund selection, usually decides real-world returns.

Beginner
Write Your Investment Thesis

Write Your Investment Thesis

Article

Write it before the next crash so you have a plan when emotions run high.

6 min read
Intermediate

What is speculation?

Short Lesson

Understand what speculation is, how it differs from investing, and how it feeds bubbles.

Beginner

Meme stocks: the 2021 frenzy

Short Lesson

Understand what happened in the 2021 meme-stock frenzy and the lesson for ordinary investors.

Beginner
What Is Speculation?

What Is Speculation?

Article

Where investing ends and gambling begins.

6 min read
Beginner

Crypto crashes: booms, busts and FOMO

Short Lesson

Understand crypto hype cycles, why volatility is extreme, and why latecomers tend to get burned.

Beginner
Why Dividend Investing Feels Safer (But Isn't)

Why Dividend Investing Feels Safer (But Isn't)

Article

The psychological appeal of dividends and why the safety is mostly an illusion.

8 min read
Intermediate

Is day trading worth it? Why most lose money

Short Lesson

Understand the evidence and psychology behind why most day traders lose money over time.

Beginner

Leverage and CFDs

Short Lesson

Understand how leverage and CFDs work and how they can cause losses bigger than your stake.

Beginner

Knowledge check

Test what you learned

  1. 1. The biggest danger to most investors' long-term returns is usually:

  2. 2. Writing an investment plan or thesis in advance helps because:

  3. 3. Why can dividend investing feel safer than it really is?