Every day I see people panicking about the market on X, or Reddit. Which is pretty funny for anyone who lived through the mid-2000s or the 80s. The current market drops should only make you sweat if you’re gambling.

I’ve written several times about how discipline and stoicism are keys to success in life, but I do think that goes double for finances. When you take risks with individual stocks, or options, you have to understand that what those risks are, and you need to make sure the money you are using is only money you could afford to lose.

This is why “The Index” (broad-based S&P 500 or total market) will win in 99% of scenarios for 99% of people. You set it and forget it. You let the market do what it needs to do on corrections and you don’t chase 500% growth moonshots. If the entire S&P 500 is red, that’s probably a good time to buy more and hold on instead of selling at a loss.

Now, the real question is why do I not follow this advice? Well, I do. Between our IRAs, 401ks, and taxable brokerage accounts, my moonshots are 0.9% of my portfolio. My dividend snowball project is 4.5% and everything else is split between my IPS appropriately. Which is 60% US stocks, 30% International, and 10% bonds. Mainly focused on $VTI (Total U.S. Stock Market Index), though my 401k only offers $VOO (VanguardS&P 500 Index), then $VXUS (Total International Stock Index excluding U.S.), and $BND (Vanguard Total Bond Index). I think that it is wise for me to move away from the bond index, and I’ve said that in the past, but I don’t like to rebalance my portfolio more than once a year. Also, even in a best-case scenario, I still plan on maintaining this ratio with the dividend portion only heading toward 10%.

Don’t gamble with your future, set your IPS, stick to it, invest often. Thank yourself later.

~~Miniwing~~
Parent, Stoic, Investor