From a personal finance perspective, trusting the process means truly believing that the end result of your financial goal will be worth all the struggles that you have to face throughout the process of getting there. It means having faith that things will eventually work out in your finances in due time.
On your long-term investment journey, trust the process. The process involves lots and lots of patience while allowing compound interest to do its magic over time. It's no secret that uncertainty in the market leads to volatility as investors try to figure out what comes next. But volatility is an essential part of investing. Despite natural disasters, wars, conflicts, referendums, and controversial presidents, the stock market always bounces back.
If you are reading this and you are currently not investing, I encourage you to make a start this new month. Market volatility is often seen as a reason to panic, but it can also be an opportunity for investors to buy stocks - they are at bargain prices at the moment. So if you're looking to invest for your future (5, 10, or 20 years’ time), then there is no better time than now to start. Anyone that is not investing in this season is missing out tremendously.
For current investors, I encourage you to use this period as a buying opportunity. Certain sectors, including technology, communications, and health care, could be attractive long-term investments and the majority of them have recently experienced declines. If the current market swings are causing you to lose sleep (maybe because you have more short-term needs for cash), then you should definitely make sure you're well-positioned to meet those needs. Don’t try to time the market.
In my book on investing “The Beauty of Compounding”, I talked about 13 different pitfalls to avoid for successful investing. Two of them are: keeping your emotions in check and ignoring the noise during times of elevated volatility. These are useful advice to take at this time. If you pore over the latest market news and follow every crash and recovery headline, you will give yourself a headache, and probably make a lot of bad investment decisions at the same time. There is a difference between staying informed about your investments and being obsessed with noise!
About Nike
Oyenike Adetoye (aka Nike) is an impactful speaker, author, and personal finance expert. A Chartered Management Accountant by profession. Nike is the founder and CEO of LifTED Finance, a private financial firm that educates, coaches and supports people on their journey through financial fitness and wealth management.