Our investment portfolios have tanked and most people are powerless and don’t know what to do. It’s the “deer in the headlights” mentality.

Should I pull out of the market, should I diversify, should I stay the course ….. ? All valid questions, but no easy answers.

But in volatile times like what we’ve recently seen, it’s important to remember one of the fundamental concepts of investing – “staying the course”.

Take an example where you invested $10,000 in a portfolio back in 1972. As the market dropped and say your portfolio hit $6,300, you decided to shift out of equities and reinvested in a 6-month CD at the average 9.90% for the period. After 10 years, your investment would have grown to about $16,130.

But if you would have remained with your original investment (such as the S&P 500) over the same period – your portfolio would have grown to around $24,969. That’s a big difference versus going the CD route.

The best advice is to discuss your options with a professional financial advisor and figure out what is best for you and your situation.

My last words come from Warren Buffett, “Our favorite holding period is forever.”

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