> Whereas if you start trading derivatives, you can lose a million dollars (as much as you want, really) in the blink of an eye. > ... > Investing bypasses those alarms. You're not spending the money; you're just moving it from one asset to another. Which is why people trying to sell you expensive things say "it's an investment."

"Investing" in derivatives is like buying million dollars in lottery tickets.

Same way you could "invest" in forex or short do stock trading daily.

You are not investing while doing those things. You just happily buy risk who someone with more wit and better ways of estimating it is selling.

If I were to say how fortunes are lost I'd point to gambling. And, yes, gambling includes "investing" in risky things you actually know about no more than the person who is selling them. And I'm talking about actual knowledge, not about your gut feeling and things you think you know better.