Pieter Slegers – A Teen’s Investing Nightmare Becomes His Greatest Teacher

BIO: Pieter Slegers is the founder of Compounding Quality Newsletter. Pieter worked for three years as a Belgian asset manager before focusing full-time on his investment newsletter, Compounding Quality, in July 2022. Compounding Quality has over 1 million followers across social media and nearly 500,000 email subscribers. The goal of the newsletter is to help other investors by focusing on Quality Investing.

STORY: At the age of 13, Peter convinced his parents to open a brokerage account. He picked the broker’s newest “hottest pick” stock—an oil/gas transport company. He invested everything, thinking the people running the company knew what they were doing. Weeks later, the 2008 financial crisis hit. Peter sold his stock after a year, taking a 60% loss.

LEARNING: Small losses are better than catastrophic ones. Knowledge is your only edge.

“People who invest in individual stocks will make mistakes. There’s no doubt about that, but it’s way better to make a mistake with a few hundred dollars compared to $100,000.”Pieter Slegers

Guest profile

Pieter Slegers is the founder of Compounding Quality Newsletter. Pieter studied Financial Management at the KULeuven and graduated summa cum laude. He worked for three years as a Belgian asset manager before focusing full-time on his investment newsletter, Compounding Quality, in July 2022. Compounding Quality has over 1 million followers across social media and nearly 500,000 email subscribers. The goal of the newsletter is to help other investors by focusing on Quality Investing.

Worst investment ever

At the age of 13, Peter earned his first paycheck by stocking shelves at a supermarket. Eager to grow his savings, he persuaded his parents to open a brokerage account (a feat for minors in Belgium).

Despite his lack of investing knowledge, he diligently explored his broker’s platform for ideas. A new stock caught his eye on the broker’s “hot picks” list—an oil/gas transport company. He invested all his earnings, believing in the company’s potential.

Peter didn’t conduct any research, despite his limited knowledge of oil and gas and his complete lack of investing experience. He simply trusted the “hot pick”.

The crash

Weeks later, the 2008 financial crisis hit. Peter sold his stock after a year, taking a 60% loss. His family was not impressed by his poor investment skills and told him that investing was akin to gambling, and he should consider working for the government instead.

Pieter felt like such a failure. However, that $300 loss was his best investment. It hurt, but it taught him never to follow others blindly.

Lessons learned

• Small losses are better than catastrophic ones. Losing $300 at the age of 13 beats losing $300,000 when you’re 40. Early pain builds immunity to big mistakes.
• Knowledge is your only edge: If you don’t understand how a company makes money, you’re gambling, not investing.
• Failure fuels obsession. That loss made Pieter devour investing books, 10-Ks, and financial news. Pain became his mentor.

Andrew’s takeaways

• Allow young investors to make mistakes with small sums (e.g., companies they understand, such as Netflix or Coca-Cola).
• Humility beats hubris. 90% of professional investors at Goldman Sachs underperform. What makes you different? It’s your checklists, not confidence.
• Read biographies, study market history, and connect patterns. Wisdom compounds like interest.

Actionable...