I border on OCD, and have actually had to block myself from checking my portfolio more than quarterly. Otherwise, it will become a repetitive, persistent and nothing good will come of this habit ... as you mention. Of course, if the world really looks like it is collapsing I will make an exception. But it has to be an actual collapse. not just a blip or a decline.
Re: OCD
ProfR
4/25/2012 8:11:12 AM
I used to check my portfolio all the time. However, it did not do me any good - either in terms of stress or portfolio performance. So the last few years, I have stopped doing that. I have a Financial Advisor who keeps track of some things for me. I also put contingent orders on some stocks so I do not need to keep daily track of stock prices. I think this makes more sense for me.
Re: OCD
driven
4/25/2012 8:24:07 AM
It's like that watched pot..it doesn't cook any faster if you hover over the stove, and sometimes you just muck it up by incessantly taking the lid off to peak inside.
@driven yes! and if you get several people involved they will fight over what to do with the lid.
Portfolio angst
impactnow
4/25/2012 11:38:17 AM
Scott you hit on exactly the question I had for those that were avid watcher did it make them avid traders? If you can watch objectively and not be swayed by emotion I don't see anything wrong with checking daily but if you are driven by the latest blurb in the news media it could prove financially fatal.
Better to wait until it is nearly done to check it. Overwatching your portfoloio may lead to making some bad decisions. It is best to resist the temptation.
Re: OCD
Phoenix
4/25/2012 12:42:59 PM
@Driven
You are right. That's exactly what will happen. I suppose you can't help it at the begining when everything is new and exiciting for you. But once you get over that it is best to take a step back and let things happen. It would be prudent to have stop-loss orders in place to handle sudden changes.
Re: OCD
ProfR
4/25/2012 1:33:47 PM
Phoenix,
That is what I have done. I put stop-loss orders on some stocks and I only look occasionally at my portfolio. I think this is a much better way to handle my stocks.
@ProfR,
I think that's great experience. My collective experience in trading/investing and seeing a huge amount of research that the most common mistakes people make are 1) not cutting losses quick enough and 2) not letting winners run.
A great example is Apple. If you got in at $200 when it "broke out" in 2009 and set a stop, at say, $150, and then let it run and forgot about it... you would be doing very nicely. If you are sitting there freaking out about it every time it moved $20 you would be more likely to sell and not see the huge generational gain.
Conversely the stop-loss defines your risk and avoids getting involved in real disaster.
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