You may have heard it’s been a bit of a volatile few days in the stock market. Yesterday, a tweet that said President Trump was considering a 90-day delay on these new tariffs sent the stock market soaring 7% in just a couple of minutes, then plummeting back down once that tweet was determined to be false.

All of this craziness is enough to make someone think they should be DOING something about it. But the wise, disciplined investor is ignoring the commotion. As the late, great Jack Bogle said: “Don’t do something, just stand there!”

I haven’t pressed my “trade” button to buy or sell stocks, ETFs, index funds, or mutual funds in a very long time. The rare occasion when I do press it has nothing to do with what’s happening in the stock market or any scary headlines. It has everything to do with what is going on in my life (like I have a new lump sum of cash to invest, or I need to take some money out to sell). Beyond that, I simply buy and hold the same index funds for decades.

The best way around hitting the “trade” button is to set up automated investments. It’s a button on almost every brokerage website. You click “Set up automated investments,” then choose the period (like once a month), the amount (like $500), and the investments you want to buy (like 54% VTI, 36% VXUS, 10% BND). Then you click submit. Then you don’t do anything, just stand there for a couple of decades, and you’re rich. The more I learn about investing, the more confident I am this is the strategy that will beat almost all other investors.

We’re probably in for a rocky ride for a while, with both ups and downs. But I promise I won’t be hitting the trade button. I’ll be doing nothing, just standing here. Maybe I’ll grab a drink or something, because I might get thirsty with all the standing. And I might need a drink watching all this nonsense unfold. But still not hitting the trade button. Neither should you.

As always, reminding you to build wealth by following the two PFC rules: 1.) Live below your means and 2.) Invest early and often.

-Jeremy