What's Next?

It is early May and the Dow has been bouncing around the 21,000 mark for the past two months. About eight years ago, on March 6^th, 2009, the Dow was at 6,626. It is up 14,000+ points since then. That is a total return of roughly 200%. That is an incredible number and way more than even the most optimistic predictions made eight years ago. The recent lack of market volatility is also at record levels. So not only is the market going up, but it has only had a few noticeable pullbacks.

It feels too easy.

We need to remember what this feels like. Historically speaking, we’re due for a correction. We can’t know when that will happen, but we’re fairly certain you aren’t going to feel as good about your investments then as you do now.

These emotions are normal, but are not reasons to make changes to your portfolio. Let’s remember that now and avoid the temptation to buy the “hot IPO,” “hot sector,” or whatever CNBC is telling you is a can’t-miss investment. Likewise, we’ll avoid the panicked selling of stocks when the market pulls back.

Managing our emotions is our second principle we adhere to regarding investment management. It states that one of the most significant aspects of your investment experience is your behavior.

You have the ability to have a successful plan if you stick with the plan instead of selling out and holding cash until “things calm down.” You get to decide how much you save each month/year and how much you spend on large expenses (like homes, cars, and travel) as well as how much money you spend in retirement. These are the things to focus on.

We do not have a magic formula to determine where the market will move in the short-term. Our goal is to guide you through the market movements by helping you remember that you’re invested in a portfolio that was crafted specifically for you and your long-term goals and that changes in the market do not change your portfolio structure, only changes to your life and your future plans should do that.

Stock investing involves risk including loss of principal. No strategy assures success or protects against loss.