…Are when investors really learn if they’re cut out for their investment strategy…do they actually walk the talk or not?
…Are when buy and hold investors learn if they really can buy and hold…or even rebalance.
…Are when they learn if their allocation really lives up to their risk tolerance.
…Are when value investors learn if they really can embrace cheaper unpopular stocks…or even bear markets.
…Are when every investor learns if their expectations are misplaced…and if they can follow their own rules.
Too often people pick a strategy based on the latest returns without knowing if they can handle it, or even stick with it when the market turns. They expect those returns to continue unabated. Yet, no strategy works all the time. Rather, strategies work best over long periods of time.
My point is, you need to find a strategy that you’re comfortable with all the time, not just when the market is going up.
Last Call
- The Confounding Bias for Investment Complexity – Research Affiliates
- Everyone is a Closet Technician – Reformed Broker
- Perfecting My Backhand Is a Lot Like My Business Strategy – R. Branson
- Why Does Pessimism Sound So Smart? – M. Housel
- Why People Get More Stupid in a Crowd – BBC
- Investors are Better Off Flipping a Coin than Following Wall Street Pros – MarketWatch
- 2016 Outlook: Same Simple Secret to Long-Term Investment Success – J. Greenblatt
- Marks Memo: What Does the Market Know (pdf) – H. Marks
- The First Venture Capitalists – The Economist
- Inside Facebook’s Ambitious Plan to Connect the Whole World – Wired