Every time the market goes down, people start telling a story about how THIS TIME IS DIFFERENT. There is inflation! The Fed! Russia! The crazy election!! Tech stocks!

There is always something going on in the world that can be used to tell a narrative about how we are about to have the biggest crash ever. In 2020, there was a once in a lifetime pandemic! That gave the, “This time is different” crowd endless ammunition. But if you bought stocks at any point in 2020, you’d be sitting on a HUGE return today.

It’s easy to focus on the negatives. BUT the market is where it is because of the balance of pessimistic and optimistic forces. No one knows which force will dominate on any given month or year. But over the long term stocks go up. The market is measuring the total economic output of all companies contained within. Those companies will continue to do business and profit. This is why people who buy and hold reap the benefits of what the stock market offers.

What does the market do for the rest of the year? No one knows that answer, no matter how confidently someone tries to tell you. And the answer doesn’t even matter. If you keep investing as much as you can, you will be very rich in the decades ahead regardless of what happens in the near term.

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

-Vivi & Shane