VICTIM OR BENEFICIARY OF FEAR, IT'S YOUR CHOICE

While the U.S. and the rest of the world may be short on jobs, short on available credit and short on signs of economic recovery, one thing they are not short on is fear.  Fear has become a pervasive part of our national consciousness in relation to the stock market and the economic recovery.  Every day brings some bad news or other that activates yet another panic attack among investors. 

The choice we face as investors is whether to become a victim of fear or learn to benefit from it.  Fear almost inevitably causes an overreaction and it has never been more evident than in the wild swings we've seen recently in the stock market.  One thing you have to do, to avoid becoming a victim of fear, is to decide whether your financial plan and your financial goals are still worth pursuing.  If the answer is yes, and your time horizon is 10 or more years, then why would you be panicked by temporary swings in the market?  Yes we are in a historically disastrous economic state at present, but this too shall pass.  Those who had the intestinal fortitude to invest during the height of the great depression and hold on, found themselves the beneficiaries of some of the greatest wealth building portfolios the world has ever seen. 

I believe we are facing just such a situation today.  While the average Americans day to day life is not as bad as the people who suffered throughout the Great Depression, there are still a great deal of similarities.  So, if you find yourself one of the lucky ones who still has a job and still has a little extra money to invest, now may be a golden opportunity to build the portfolio of a lifetime.  When panic takes hold and most investors flee the market, look at that as an opportunity to pick up great company stocks at bargain basement prices.  The resulting investments could generate untold wealth for you and your loved ones for generations to come.  Instead of being victimized by fear, choose to become a beneficiary instead.