Many people don't understand why losses don't seem that serious, but getting back to break-even is ridiculously difficult. In fact, numbers tell the story.

Small losses are manageable. If you lose 5%, you need a 5.3% increase to break even. Looks like only a 0.3% difference? Don't be fooled. A 10% loss requires an 11% gain, a 15% loss needs an 18% increase—do you see the pattern? The relationship between loss and gain is not proportional at all.

Looking further down is even more heartbreaking. A 20% loss? You need a 25% increase. A 25% loss? You must gain 33%. At this point, it's no longer a small problem. A 30% loss requires a 43% increase, and a 40% loss is even more outrageous—requiring a 67% surge.

The most despairing is when you lose 50%. Your principal is halved, but to recover, you need a 100% increase, meaning the remaining money must double. The deeper the loss, the exponentially harder it is to break even. Losing 100%? That's game over—no chance to recover.