Any investment in an event or activity of uncertain outcome in the hope of profit is gambling. The failure to accept this is the reason why so many people find business / trading / investment losses so hard to live with. They reason that, as they are not gambling, or so they believe, they could not be subject to seemingly unforeseeable failures and losses. They find these losses psychologically hurtful and damaging, to the extent that they are unable to carry on the activity with any objectivity. On the other hand, many people view un-earned profit, or profit from a random event, as being undeserved and, to a degree, of lower value than money honestly earned through work and application. This does not help their sense of purpose, self-worth and money management.
And so they fail.
There is no point kidding yourself that as an investor / trader / entrepeneur / property speculator or whatever you are not gambling - you are, and the failure to perceive this reality will undermine how you deal with the bad times.
