Building Wealth The S&P 500 Index surged 8% in October... the market's best monthly gain in four years.
But if you had traded based on some of the news of late September and early October...
- "Get ready for a 'destruction of wealth' as stocks head toward a bear market," warned a MarketWatch headline.
- "I think the joyride is over," said activist investor Carl Icahn on CNBC.
- "Why October Is the Worst Month for Investors," stated a Bloomberg Businessweek headline.
... you may have panicked and sold, missing out on the month's huge broad-market gains.
I dedicated my October issue of Retirement Millionaire for paid-up subscribers to dissecting this phenomenon: Why do folks always focus on the negative?
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Even when we're experiencing major improvements in our lives... we complain about the minor downsides.
We're concerned with how much time people waste on the Internet, rather than looking at the amazing and beautiful things the Internet makes possible. You can learn virtually anything online.
For example, a young Kenyan just set a new African record for the javelin throw, 92.72 meters. He never had a coach. He learned to throw simply by watching videos on the YouTube Internet site.
That's just the start...
I'm excited about the next few decades.
Retirees are primed for an unprecedented increase in quality of life and financial security.
For example, a taxi ride across Baltimore used to cost about $25. If you call for a driver today using the ride-sharing app Uber, you now pay about $7 for the same ride in a cleaner, more pleasant car.
And look at the brutal price wars between retail outlets like Target, Wal-Mart, and Amazon. You can buy almost anything from these stores cheaper than ever before. And you can even get two-day shipping for free with services like Amazon Prime.
Quality also makes a difference... In 1980, you could buy a Ford Escort for $5,198. In 2015 dollars, that's a little less than $15,000. Compared with today's cars, that Escort was a hunk of junk.
Today, for that price, you can get a basic Ford Fiesta, Hyundai Accent, or Honda Fit. These new cars are miles ahead based on quality, comfort, and reliability. They will easily last you 15 years.
You Are Your Own Worst Enemy
Please don't fall for stories about how the economy is doomed... that the market is destined to collapse... or that the "good ol' days" are over.
That's not to say we know where the market will be next month. It may be down or up. And we will absolutely have corrections and volatility in the coming months and years. That's a fact of investing, and life, in general.
But remember that you are your own worst enemy when it comes to profiting from your investments.
In a recent study, Fidelity Investments analyzed client accounts to see who had the best performance. The highest-earning group was those who actually forgot they had investment accounts at Fidelity.
Anyone who reads a newspaper or watches financial news regularly is always going to have a reason to get out of the market.
Don't let fear paralyze you from taking charge of your finances. Don't let worry over your future retirement prevent you from enjoying your life.
And as I wrote in my October issue of Retirement Millionaire that I mentioned earlier: A market dip like the recent one is the perfect time to add to your holdings of quality stocks.
I went on to detail my four favorite investments...
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(Note: Retirement Millionaire subscribers can read the issue here. If you're not yet a Retirement Millionaire subscriber, you can click here to get more information.)
In October, these four positions rallied more than 10% each... beating the market's 8% climb... and have set up investors with significant potential income. Two of these recommended positions pay an annual dividend yield of more than 8.5%.
Take control of the things you can and enjoy the fact that things, in general, are getting better.