Losing out can be painful and it mostly hurts when the reason why you lost out is because you fear you needed to protect some few individuals.
After having gone through life for as long as I have and putting work as much as I have, I have come to see that, "loyalty is usually overrated until it turns out to favor you."
You see, we are in a competitive world where everyone is trying desperately to outdo everyone else and no matter how you try to do the best you can, there will always come that time when you will ask yourself, "should I or should I not" and I got to that stage at some point and after asking myself that question, I went with the latter and displeased self.
The journey we are on in life is more of the good things that awaits us at the end of the day and not of the bad we see at every turn. I believe there are infinite possibilities for everyone and that is why I believe that the word, "Opportunity comes but once" is misguided.
Life will demand of you loyalty with no promise of a reward. Life and the people you hold dear will always impress you that, you should live loyally for them instead of for yourself and when you get swayed with that notion, you become drawn into an endless pit of loses where everything and everyone you thought you knew will just wind up in the shadows.
Make wise decisions and never allow emotions and sentiments choose your side or point out your loyalty. There is more to life than wondering what the grass looks like on the other side.