Catastrophic Loss (Part 4)

For years I’ve felt that catastrophic loss is the worst thing possible but in the big picture, it’s not uncommon.

By the very nature of the word, “catastrophic” sounds like an outlier. The second definition is:

> extremely unfortunate or unsuccessful [italics mine].

“Outlier” and “extreme” are synonymous.

For something so extreme, though, catastrophic loss is all around us. This need not be loss of life although that certainly would qualify. I’m thinking more akin to Serena Williams’ loss to unseeded Roberta Vinci in the 2015 U.S. Open a couple weeks ago. That ended her bid for the Calendar Slam, which would have been one of the great tennis accomplishments of all time. Another example comes from Survivor: Second Chance: we heard some players talk about losing in previous seasons and how catastrophic it was because they were so close to winning $1M. I think anytime we put our heart and soul into something and then get blindsided and/or fail to accomplish, the result is catastrophic.

In psychological terms, maybe “devastating” is the word used more often. Like the loss of a loved one, it can be associated with grief. Those who are true champions will be able to deal with it and bounce back. These make for many of the inspirational stories the evening news loves to report.

Going forward, the best course of action would be to get my checklist in place to decrease the possibility of catastrophic loss from ever occurring again. Given that I’m now in financial drawdown and emotional recovery, though, I also need to focus on a bright future, positive things, and pulling myself up by the bootstraps.

For the time being, I’ve said quite enough about catastrophic loss. Let’s go out and make some money, shall we?