Why Smart People Make Big Money Mistakes — and How to Correct Them

By Gary Belsky & Thomas Gilovich
Jul 29, 2025

An over-sensitivity to short-term loss can prompt investors to sell winners too soon and hold losers too long. Here’s how to gauge if your investment decisions are overly influenced by loss aversion.

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Written by

Gary Belsky & Thomas Gilovich

Gary Belsky & Thomas Gilovich

Excerpted from Why Smart People Make Big Money Mistakes—and How to Correct Them by Gary Belsky and Thomas Gilovich. Copyright 1999, 2009 by Gary Belsky and Thomas Gilovich. Reprinted by permission of Simon & Schuster.

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