Stick to 'long-haul' investing to navigate short-term market chaos

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Madison Mills , Seana Smith and Brian Sozzi

Fri, Mar 7, 2025, 9:50 AM

"I think if you're talking about investing in stocks at all, you've got to continue to focus on the long term. Trying to time short-term movements is pretty difficult," he says. "We counsel our clients and our advisors to focus on the long haul and educate people more and more about how markets work."

Booth also stresses how investment education can work to reduce investor anxieties: "The more people understand about how markets work, the less anxious they get in times like this, and the better able they're able to stay for the long haul."

00:00 Speaker A

Dave, there's so much to get into here with you. I I'm curious to get your sense of where we stand today. Following the sell-off that we have seen in the markets, obviously some of the jitters that are clearly very evident right now from investors. And then pairing that with some of these slowing econ data that we have been getting, how should we be thinking about where we stand?

00:34 Dave

Well, I think if you're talking about investing in stocks at all, you got to continue to focus on the long term. You know, trying to time short-term movements uh is pretty difficult. You know, this week, you know, the news that's out and the amount of adjustment all seems kind of sensible to me. Unless you could forecast these events happening uh, you know, it's hard to make money off of that. Um, so we counsel our uh our clients and our advisors to focus on the long long haul and you know, educate people more and more about how markets work. The more people understand about how markets work, the less anxious they get in times like this and the better able they are able to stay for the long haul. And if you can stay for the long haul, you get that benefit of that magic of compounding, you know, that we that Einstein talks about as being the eighth wonder of the world, you know. So, every time there's a I've been in the business over 50 years and if you look at the things that make me unhappy, uh uh it's every time the market drops a lot. A certain number of our clients panic and go, you know, the sky is falling, I've got to get out of here. Uh that makes me sad because it's very difficult to get back in once you make that decision. You know, you you get out and you go, then the market takes off. People go, well, the train's left the station. I can't get back in now, you know, uh. I didn't I thought it was overpriced before, now it's even higher. So, you just have to be very careful about all of that.

05:09 Speaker B

David, the headlines are coming in hot and heavy. Are your clients panicking right now?

05:19 Dave

Uh, no, we have well, kind of history of our business is we have new clients come in probably like everybody else's new clients and they go try it out. And then you go through a couple of downturns and upturns and over time, and we've been to the business 43 years now, what do we have are clients that are really are long-term investors. Um and frequently we call up and say, look, uh, let's chat about. Don't, you don't need to talk to me. I know what you're going to say and, you know, I'm in this for the long haul. Now, uh I do think there's the other side of the coin is, you know, in setting investment policy, you try to set it for your particular situation, your conditions. Okay. So, okay, well, maybe the market, people focus on what's happened in the market. Maybe you should focus more on what's happening in your personal life. The uh there may be more variability in what's happening in the personal life if you look at all the potential for a lot of layoffs and so forth. You know, maybe spend a little more time thinking about that. But in general, when they go home at night, instead of trying to uh time short-term moves, you know, spend a little time with their kids and and be a little bit more relaxed, I guess.