In my earlier post, I wrote about how an investor is neither saint nor sinner. You will not get every decision right. You will not always stay calm. You will not always act with perfect discipline. Yet you still move forward. You still invest. You still show up for your own future.

Today, I want to push that idea a little deeper.

The real mistake investors make is believing that only two types of people exist. The perfectly rational investor who never flinches. And the impulsive investor who always reacts. You already know that neither stereotype is real.

Between those two extremes lies the truth. And that truth is far more powerful.

You will feel fear when markets fall. You will feel greed when markets rise. You will sometimes hold too long. You will sometimes sell too early. You will regret decisions you cannot undo. And yet none of this disqualifies you from long-term success.

What separates successful investors from unsuccessful ones is not perfection. It is persistence. It is the ability to return to your plan after you drift. It is the willingness to learn something from every mistake. It is the patience to allow time to repair the damage your emotions may have caused.

The space between saint and sinner is the space where real investing happens. It is where you choose discipline over drama. It is where you ignore the need to look smart and instead focus on staying invested. It is where you accept that discomfort is part of the journey, not a sign that you are doing something wrong.

When you stop asking, “Did I get every decision right?” and instead ask, “Am I still moving in the right direction?” everything shifts.

Markets will test you again and again. Your own mind will test you even more. But if you can keep walking, even slowly, you will restore progress. You will see the compounding of your decisions in ways that feel almost magical over time.

Great investing is quiet. It is imperfect. It is repetitive. It is human. It is built not by saints who never stumble, nor sinners who never recover, but by people who stay in the middle and keep going.

That middle path is not a compromise. It is the path that leads you forward.