'Patience is a Virtue'
‘Patience is a Virtue’
My wife and I have started to watch ‘Young Sheldon’ on Netflix. There’s a scene in one of the episodes that shows Dads all around the world telling their children to shut the fridge door because they were wasting money on electricity. I had to chuckle because it brought me back to my own childhood and some of the phrases that my parents repeated over and over that drove me crazy.
I bet you don’t have to wander too far down memory lane to recall some of your own.
The worst one for me though, was by far, “Patience is a virtue”. It was my Mom’s favourite. And in true kid fashion, I couldn’t stand it. And the more she said it, the more I hated it.
But back then I didn’t understand the value of the advice she was giving to me. I also had no idea that one day I would become an associate portfolio manager and it would become an invaluable piece of wisdom to help guide my decisions.
It has also been advice that I have tried to pass on to clients. Especially during the last nine months when markets have been volatile and, at times, downright terrible.
But just because markets have been poor, doesn’t mean that your investments are poor. Sometimes, we can own a good quality investment that temporarily loses market value because it gets swept up in a poor market.
And that doesn’t mean we should be quick to get rid of it. Instead, we should do what my Mom always said and exercise some patience. In fact, history shows that it’s the opposite that’s true - we should be looking to buy more at the now discounted price.
This is something to remember as you scan the list of investments that you own looking to take action to stop the losses. Ask yourself questions about each one, “Once this market turns, will I be happy that I got rid of the largest cell phone maker in the world?” Or, “Are sales of hamburgers and chicken nuggets doomed forever because inflation got hot and interest rates are going up?”
If the answer to those types of questions is ‘No’, then history shows that your best bet is to hold on to those investments. Remember, just because the market sucks, doesn’t mean your investments do.
So exercise the virtue of patience, and in the meantime, thank your parents for some of those old phrases that you’ll never forget. Sometimes, they become the most valuable investment!
Thank you Mom.