The number one question we are fielding these days is “What do you think the market is going to do?” It’s natural this is on the top of our clients minds as they have seen the value of their portfolio’s drop from 2% to 6% on average depending on how much exposure they have in the stock market. But, honesty, we have no idea what the “market” is going to do going forward. In fact, if you look at the attached periodic table of investment asset classes, how could have anyone in the past predicted any of what actually happened over the past 10 years – there are just too many variables and things that happen in the world that make investors feel good or bad – hopeful or hopeless – bullish or bearish!
Instead of lying by suggesting we know what’s coming, we typically respond by reinforcing the diversification policy that we put into place for them that was built around their financial plan and goals. That is the only control we have in the entire process. We know it’s uncomfortable for people to see red when they look at their statements. But, typically bad things get flushed out and reset during times of stress. We saw that is 2008 during the financial crisis. The US came back stronger and a lot of things got fixed. This cycle has repeated itself over and over again in history and there is no reason that this little blip is different from the rest!
So, let’s stay calm, diversified, and optimistic that we will come out of this one better than we were before!
