Danger of Changing Lanes & Investing Alike

With the current stock market being very volatile, it has been down more than double digits, many, including the college students I am mentoring, are not clear if it makes more sense to stay put in their quality stock positions or to try to trade in and out of them to get a better rate of return or to lessen the overall lost.

Facts have shown that such a strategy or practice does not work most of the time. Doing so is only another way of trying to time the market. Sometimes you may think you can buy low and sell high before it gets lower to then buy it back to wait for it to back up again, it may not be as easy as it seems.

The reality is, when buying and selling stocks, there are costs in fee, time, research, emotional stress, etc. Again, it rarely does work, so you are better off staying invested and keeping to your long term investment goal.

Similarly, if you are taking a long road trip, planning on driving aggressively by changing lanes to find a faster lane to beat traffic that would save time (getting there faster) and money does not really yield favorable results.

When people drive aggressively, they put themselves more at risk of getting into an accident, getting a traffic ticket, and creating danger for others, as well as creating more wear and tear on your vehicle. Not to mention the mental focus and attention it takes to drive safely under such an environment. One may get there faster (if even possible, sometimes not), but maybe not by much, as the flow of traffic will limit your speed.

Remember to be an investor, be disciplined, and think long-term. Do not let the short market (like road traffic) conditions change your goals. Stay in your lane and keep focus on the destination planned ahead.