I thought the whole 'buy the dip' thing was just for gamblers until my 401k dropped 15% last quarter.

I held steady and kept my normal contributions, and it's already recovered more than half that loss. Has anyone else found a simple strategy that actually worked when things got rough?

4 comments

4 Comments

lewis.terry2mo ago

That "bill that gets paid automatically" idea from gibson.avery is key. It removes the scary feeling of choosing to buy during a dip because the decision was already made. My own rule is to never check the balance more than once a quarter, which stops me from reacting to every little drop.

gibson.avery2mo ago

Yeah, that's the move right there. I just treat my 401k like a bill that gets paid automatically. When the market tanked last year, I actually upped my contribution by 1% because everything was on sale. It felt weird, but it paid off big time.

the_alice2mo ago

My buddy just set up auto transfers to his investment account every payday. I mean, he didn't even look at the balance for a year and was shocked how much it added up after a bad spell.

max_torres442mo ago

Wait, you upped your contribution when the market was down? That takes some serious guts, man. I just froze and watched my balance drop like a rock. How did you even think to do that when everything felt like it was falling apart? I guess that's the whole "buy low" thing in real life, but actually doing it is a different story. You must have nerves of steel.