I visit many of my friends when I am out and about, and when the stock market gets really high, they say to me, “Oh, your clients must be really, really happy.” Or if the stock market for some reason is depressed and if it’s really low, they say, “Oh my gosh, you must be getting a lot of telephone calls.”
I reply this way, “We don’t get telephone calls based on what the market is doing”. People who are affected and emotional about the market have trained themselves to have their underwear in a knot and to be uncomfortable ‘all the time’.
I am specifically writing this blog in mid-April. You’re reading it shortly after the 4th of July holiday when we post it. Why write it so long ago? Because I have no idea, when this was written, what a quarterly statement will look like at the beginning of July.
But this is what I do know and this is what I have spoken about for seemingly forever; I have tried to communicate it to people that we have worked with for years or for decades -
The snapshot took place on Tuesday, June 30th at 3 o’clock in the afternoon, Central Daylight Time.
Let me explain.
The new quarterly statement that people are basing if they’re going to be happy or sad is based on Tuesday, June 30th at 3 o’clock in the afternoon, Central Daylight Time. Because that’s when the markets closed for the second quarter.
Had the snapshot taken place on Monday, the numbers would have been different. Had the numbers taken place on July 1st, on Wednesday, the numbers would have been different. In fact, literally as you are sleeping during your bedtime hours, you’ve got to remember - if you are invested in Asia, the markets there are alive and they’re either going up and down while you’re sleeping. Good luck sleeping tonight, now that you realize THAT!
Now, you really have something to worry about! Don’t get your underwear in a knot about what the market is doing. The market will take care of itself.
Our job is to keep your blood pressure low and for you to not get all worked up about the life of ‘the market’. Our team is always looking at the markets. We are looking at investments each and every day.
….And our blood pressure is fine, because whether the market is doing great at this moment in time or whether it is doing poorly at this moment in time, we have been there before and we will be there again. So don’t focus on Tuesday, June 30th at three o’clock in the afternoon, Central Daylight Time, because that’s when the picture was snapped for your most recent quarterly statement.
Don’t live by the numbers. Don’t get freaked out by the numbers. Again, whether they’re good or bad, because again, as I am writing this blog, I have no idea what the numbers are going to be. The market is part of our life, but it should not dictate your life.
So, stay away from ‘snapshot’ thinking. Stay away from 'how did the market do today?' Unless you needed the money this very instant, it doesn’t make an impact. Remember, we have your back and are constantly looking out for you.
