He looked at the number with many 0s trailing behind it. He had successfully harnessed a relatively low-risk investment strategy and it had earned him millions. He considered his position. He could stop there and live a happy and steady life. Is it not the goal of so many people on Earth to just have what they need and that would make them happy? He can take that step off the ladder and he would be in a position that he had long dreamed and strived for.

A notification pops up. It’s his colleague. She’s congratulating him on the his win and she wants to celebrate with him. He has a wife and two kids. Yet, he has been keeping an eye on this particular colleague with vague and perhaps adulterous ambition. He shook his head. No, he was happy with his life and with his wife. There’s no need to tread in dangerous waters. He minimised the notification to ensured it remained “unread” even though he had actually read it.

That number was still on his screen and he pondered. What if. What if I can make these millions into even more. What if, I just tried some medium-risk investments, or even a few high-risk and he could be so much more better off. He reopened the messaging app and reread the “Let’s celebrate!” message from his colleague. She had dealt with the higher-risk investments before... perhaps she could help. He opened it and began typing:

“Hey, thank you. Sounds good. Looking for my next adventure. Perhaps you’ll be interested?”

There are some who see greed as a good thing. It invokes creativity and innovation to monetise gaps in the market. Whereas equally, there’s always a balance and unfortunately for this man. He landed on the scale and shook the balance.

After some persuasion by his colleague, as well as some extracurricular activity, he had put his eggs into a wrong basket. He lost his money and consequently, his job. And though he could not see it. He would lose his wife and the right to see his kids. Just because his goals stretched further when he had reached his first. Falling victim to what most would deem as greed. He had gained nothing and yet lost everything.