Well arguably it would be even worse than.

I think it's save to say that the relative amount of money lost is more important than the absolute money lost for most people

If his net worth is $1k, with $500 in cash and $250 in Tesla that makes perfect sense.

Under 35s median net worth is $4k

https://g.foolcdn.com/image/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fg.foolcdn.com...

If your earnings are likely to go up dramatically later, then it's fine to take large risks with the money you can invest now. Unless you have large gains, it's not enough money to make much difference anyway.

This assumes of course that you've got the basics covered, like being out of debt and having some kind of emergency backup (savings, insurance, well-off parents, etc).