There is a saying in statistics: 

“If your head is in the oven and your feet are in the freezer, on average, you feel just fine.” 

This humorous remark underscores a serious issue with relying solely on averages... they can often be misleading and misrepresented.

The “average” is a funny concept

It looks clean, mathematical, even comforting.

But then you realise it’s like that newsroom anchor who always gives you half-truths.

 “Never forget the six-foot-tall man who drowned crossing the stream that was five feet deep on average.”  -- Howard Marks

We all love to throw averages around.

“Stock markets give 12–15% average returns.”

Sounds nice. Sounds reassuring.

Until you actually invest.

Because the market doesn’t move like this:

Year 1: 15%

Year 2: 15%

Year 3: 15%

Instead it move like this:

+29%

-19%

+57%

-4%

…and you’re left wondering whether you’re in a financial plan or on a rollercoaster at the Disney World.

That’s the thing. Averages hide the chaos.

They take jagged mountains and draw a straight line.

And if you’re someone who expects the mountain trek to feel like a walk at Marine drive, good luck.

And investments?

Markets don’t move in straight lines. They breathe. They convulse. They sometimes collapse in front of you like SRK in Jawan, only to rise with background music and surprise you with +40% the next year.

If you can’t live with this volatility, you shouldn’t be in stocks.

But here’s the paradox: it is this volatility that give you an opportunity to enter.

It’s the reason long-term investors make money.

It’s the discomfort you need to get comfortable with.

Because the market doesn’t care about your Excel sheet that projects a clean 2x in 5 years.

It cares about whether you have the stomach to sit through -19% without losing your appetite.

Reality is jagged.

Reality is messy.

And reality will rarely, if ever, look like the average.