6 Ways to Increase Your Probability of Success
I recently talked with a man that was almost irrational with anger. Something else had performed better than his portfolio. In his career he had been a perfectionist and only the best was ever acceptable. If you only accept being the best, what happens if you are not? What happens if you can’t always be the best, or shouldn’t always be?
When it comes to investing, if you think your return must always be the highest then you are more than likely chasing what’s hot in the short-term and forgetting what it takes to achieve your goals in the long-term. If you invest with the belief that you always have to achieve the highest possible return, can you ever have peace of mind? Those who want what’s hot tend to be the ones always reading, studying, and worrying about their portfolios.
Another option is to invest using a systematic, unemotional and diversified process that, I believe, allows us to spend less time worrying and more time enjoying fishing, grandchildren or whatever else it is we like to do. When it comes down to it, I believe that probability of success for the long-term is more important to most than having the best portfolio in the short-term.
If you want to be happier as you get closer to retirement I think being the best is not of the utmost importance, but doing what helps to put probability of success on your side is. To help increase your probability of success you’ll need to:
- Be Diversified
- Be Properly Allocated
- Have a Plan
- Have Appropriate Emergency Funds
- Maintain a Realistic Budget
- Have Enough Conservative Investments to Survive a Down Market
If you forgo these 6 things, then you are probably a perfectionist who only wants the best. When you fully realize that you don’t always have to be the best to achieve the best, you may find life to be more enjoyable.
The opinions voiced in this material are for general information only and are not intended to provide specific advice or recommendations for any individual. There is no guarantee that a diversified portfolio will enhance overall returns or outperform a non-diversified portfolio. Diversification does not protect against market risk. No strategy ensures success or protects against a loss.
