Be Greedy When Others Are Fearful? History Says This Is What Happens When You Keep Investing Through a Bear Market.
The emotional choices people can make with their portfolio during market downturns can have tremendous consequences.
Most individual investors build their portfolios gradually over time, often investing a portion of each paycheck.
You might not associate a name with it, but making gradual, routine investments over time is a strategy known as dollar-cost averaging. It feels good to invest when stock prices keep going up, but stick around the stock market long enough, and the pendulum will swing the other way.
Stock prices do go down, and bear markets occur when the market declines 20% or more from its high. It's not fun, but it's normal. But bear markets can evoke negative emotions, such as fear and stress, and may prompt people to stop buying or sell and withdraw from the market altogether.
