People behave according to their mindset. Some mindsets can keep you from putting your money to work, which you can do by buying equity investments such as equity investment funds. Psychological fear can also keep you from investing. Here are five mistakes that can keep you from building your investment portfolio.

1. Waiting for the markets to pull back and lose some value: Sure, it makes sense to buy investments at bargain prices (for a fund investor, this means buying at lower unit values). However, procrastination can stem from needing “belief confirmation” before acting. The problem is that this mindset may avoid evidence that contradicts their belief. The media frequently offers bad news. If the market has a down day, it can confirm those negative beliefs. People often filter out positive news that doesn’t support the belief that the market could pull back and decrease in value. This process can paralyze an investment plan for years. The best plan may be to buy more fund units when prices are 7-10% lower.
2. Missing opportunity when it is evident: If the market becomes bullish and rises in value, a procrastinator with this bias can ignore facts such as the earnings news that the top Canadian banks all earned excellent profits or that the uranium-related security prices were at a reasonable price to buy (this reflects similarly on such unit values held within funds holding these stocks). Even positive media and rising market momentum can conflict with fearful notions one believes about investing.
3. Quickly selling investments upon noting an initial profit: People might sell an investment early once it rises in value for fear of any future loss. Aside from taxes, once sold, an investment with a gain or a loss ends any potential for it to rise in value. To avoid this mindset, one should follow a disciplined, written plan developed by an investment advisor for buying or selling investments. Then, one should refer to it frequently.
4. Fear of a market correction when values reach a historical value: “Anchoring” an investment viewpoint occurs when someone assigns a reference number, like a 52-week high or low, to compare the price of an investment fund’s unit value. Past price movements poorly predict future price performance. When you invest for the long term for retirement, using a historical price is metaphorically like driving backward on the expressway.
5. Not seeking a credentialed financial advisor’s help: Many procrastinate and need professional guidance and motivation to start and stick to a written investment plan. If your circumstances change, we can tweak your plan.

Call us or contact us via this website. As professionals trained to help you invest, we are happy to review your situation.