Conquer Your Fear of Market Volatility!
Neither a man nor a crowd nor a nation can be trusted to act humanely or think sanely under the influence of a great fear…To conquer fear is the beginning of wisdom” —Bertrand Russell, British mathematician and philosopher.
The above is applicable to all parts of life, especially when you are an investor in the equity markets. The last few weeks have amply demonstrated how investors, whether institutional, retail or even the veterans reacted to the sharp fall in the stock markets. The same people who were bullish, not so long ago, turned bearish at the advent of a technical correction. And that too, after expectations for more than a while that the markets needed to correct.
In such situations analytical skills are put aside, and crucial financial decisions are made under the influence of fear. For instance, any risk in one segment leads to a perception that there are risks everywhere. Now that the global economies are not doing so well, analysts, experts and investors are juxtaposing the performance of those economies on India and predicting slowdown in earnings, valuations, political risks and inflation.
So, the big question is that how should you look at fear? Yes, all our portfolios are down, but should you refrain from investing in the market? If the answer is no, then it is almost like saying that since my neighbour lost a huge sum of money in an investment, I will stop investing too.
Before you come to any conclusion, delve a bit deeper into the nature of investments that your neighbour was making. For all you know, your neighbour was over-leveraged, too greedy, had not done suitable asset allocation and his entire portfolio was in mid-cap stocks.
There are many who treat market investment as an act of war. They sit in front of a television, watch market news and calculate their gains and losses by the minute. Certainly, this is not the way to look at investments.
What is however within your control is your ability to control your fear as well as greed. Here are a few tips you can use –
Set certain rules in place before you start investing. Include factors such as managing in a situation where a slip of 35% happens. Also, if you have planned your finances well, there will be no need to pull out of equity investments in such situations. Define clearly what you will not do when the markets go down and how will you cope up with fear. Of course, thinking and actually going through a 35% drop are two different things.
Ask yourself something very important. “Does a drop in prices mean doom?” If you were confident of buying at higher levels, a fall should be seen as an opportunity rather than a loss. Of course, if you are into investments for quick gains, there is a clear case of mis-judgement. But good investments will always remain good investments. And whenever the markets bounce back, these are the first ones who will enjoy the spurt.
Understand your Investor Feeling Quotient (IFQ). Do you feel scared to death when prices go down? How do you feel when prices go up continuously? Crunch the numbers and see how you would have over-performed or under-performed when you bought during times of excess optimism or great pessimism. Your responses will point you towards the right direction.
Take a contrarian view. When everyone is selling, it offers opportunities to buy as well. Your financial position is different from others. Thus, decision-making should also be based on your financial position, and not on someone else’s portfolio performance. There are many who have come out winners from the previous slumps as well. To join the gang you need good investments and patience. Simple, isn’t it?
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