What if you studied at a 短気大学?
(Tanki wa sonki; “A short temper leads to loss”)
People who let their tempers get the better of them end up making errors, getting into fights, and causing trouble, and ultimately do themselves harm. Anger leads to unforced errors or unnecessary conflict and thence to failure. It’s best to be patient and reserved in one’s dealings with others.
This entire phrase comprises two nouns and the particle は (wa) connecting them. In this case, the particle draws a direct link between the two nouns. The first noun is 短気 (tanki), “short temper” or “impatience,” and the second is 損気 (sonki), a play on 損 (son), “loss,” “disadvantage.”
損気 is a word coined specifically for this saying by playing off of 短気, and is rarely found in any other context. In general, 損 can be used on its own.
(“Tanki wa sonki, ano ikkansei wo shiranai seijika wa kekkyoku boketsu wo hotta.”)
[“A short temper hurts you, and in the end that erratic politician dug his own grave.”]