Greetings once again. I thought it was important to drop you a note this morning to help you work through this situation in the markets, as it can look pretty dire. I want you to know that, as I stated in this newsletter earlier this month – this situation is a fleeting thing. We will soon have the “bailout” in place, and the markets will recover. It’s important to keep all of this in perspective… while the headlines shout about the largest drop ever in the stock market, bear in mind that in terms of percentage, this doesn’t even come close to the largest drop. I realize it can be painful to watch – but if you’re invested for the long term (which you all should be) then this short-term “noise” will have little impact on your overall plan. As we’ve noted before, with pessimism at its height, it won’t be long before things turn around. It’s always darkest just before dawn.
Take a hint from this quote:
“I have not looked at any of my holdings and don’t intend to. I don’t want to be tempted to jump because I think I’d be more likely to jump in the wrong direction than the right one. My advice has always been to choose a sensible diversified portfolio and stop reading the financial pages. I recommend the sports section.”
That was from Richard Thaler, professor of behavioral science and economics, University of Chicago Graduate School of Business.
And as always, if you want to talk it over, please give me a call.
Click the link to pick up a copy of A Social Security Owner's Manual or if you'd prefer the Kindle version (and let's face it, ALL the cool kids do!), you can find that at this Kindle version link.
I can learn from you, you can learn from me - please leave your comments and links!Jim Blankenship, CFP®, EA, is an expert in personal retirement, IRAs, and tax issues, with more than 25 years of experience in the industry. Read more from this author
And if you've come here to learn about queuing waterfowl, I apologize for the confusion. You may want to discuss your question with Lester, my loyal watchduck and self-proclaimed "advisor's advisor".