☕ 5 iron-clad, battle-tested, profit-proven rules to live by when the markets get nasty
Nov 06, 2026Happy FriYAY! 👋
I hope you’re off to a great start wherever this email finds you as I am here after an early morning desert ride and some time in the gym.
I’m glad to see some green on the screen and presume you are too.
Big down days are no fun… even though we know they’re perfectly normal.
Crazy, right? 🤷🏻
Indeed! 💯
The markets require buying AND selling to work normally.
Personally, I did a little of the former yesterday and trust that you did too.
To be fair, I did grit my teeth, but I did it anyway knowing that the selloff was a mechanical, technical blitz that had nothing to do whatsoever with the business case for owning great stocks.
I hope you did, too.
Here’s what I want you to remember today above all else.
You have 100% control over your investing process at all times – and that’s where the game is won.
I won’t pull any punches… never have.
We can’t control the world around us, but we absolutely CAN control the world within and the choices we make when the markets get nasty.
You can make a change right now for one of two reasons.
First, you can decide you’re going to master the markets. Then go do it.
Or, second, you can do it because you’ve reached a decision point where you know you’ve got to do something but you’re unsure what.
Either way, you’ve got to break through the fear and uncertainty that paralyzes so many investors today.
Beginner or expert doesn’t matter.
Little or a lot doesn’t matter.
Younger or older doesn’t matter.
You are what you focus on in life and in the financial markets. And if you’re constantly scared or uncertain, your portfolio will reflect that.
If you’re worried about not making a mistake and sitting at the crossroads doing nothing, then you’ve already made the biggest mistake of all. The world will leave you and your money behind.
But… and this is a big one.
I call it the “Millionaire Moment” …
If you focus on consistently buying the world’s best companies – meaning companies that are changing the world ... companies where customers can’t get enough of what they make or sell ... companies that often pay huge dividends and have fortress-like balance sheets ...
Guess what?
Suddenly, you’ll be thinking about winning, about profits, about investing in optimism. You'll gladly take that $10 you would have spent buying a double triple cuppa of whatever at your local coffee stand and invest it.
Here are 5 iron-clad, battle-tested, profit-proven rules I’ve developed that can help.
1 – Get the person in the mirror under control
People want to blame everyone and everything for what’s happening… the President, the Fed, AI spending and so on.
Try looking in the mirror.
THAT’s the person you need to get under control.
Keep your emotions out of the equation.
2 – Know the numbers and trust ‘em
I know the selling stinks, it’s scary – I get it.
Here’s the thing.
We’ve seen this movie so often that we know the script by heart.
There isn’t a single down day that hasn’t been trampled by the next running of the bulls.
Saddle up, my friend!
Investing in optimism beats cowering in fear and history is very, very clear about that.
After 11 of the worst single-day crashes since 1987, the S&P 500 was up +30.5% on average a year later, and averaged +12.1% a year over three years and +13.1% a year over five.
Yesterday’s “crash” is just the latest villain in a very long lineup. And, btw, it didn’t even crack the 11 worst list.
3 – Know who YOU are
I’ve said it a thousand times and I will say it again.
You can be an investor or a trader, not both.
Decide right now.
This isn’t about being “right” – that’s a common misconception.
Deciding who YOU are is about being profitable.
If you’re an investor, awesome.
Days like yesterday or even last week are an engraved invitation to buy the very best names you can. Perhaps you slow down or buy less than normal as a way of keeping emotions at bay, but you buy nonetheless (because you know what I showed you in point #2 about how the bulls eventually rule the day, even when the bears come out to play). 😀
If you’re a trader, equally awesome.
You can make plenty of money when volatility explodes and, if you’re not, perhaps you’re not who you think you are. Not trying to ruin your day but it’s my job to point out the obvious even if you don’t like it. 🙄
4 – Buy the best, ignore the rest!®
People are constantly asking me about “hot” stocks.
Wrong question.
History shows that the world’s best companies tend to fall less, stabilize faster and come roaring outta the hole when the selling’s done.
That’s why you want to own ‘em.
And yeah… it really is as simple as that.
Many folks think they’re going to do just fine with ETFs, and that’s probably true over time. But if you really want to make bank, history shows very clearly that you must consider adding the very best companies to your portfolio.
For example – controversial as this may seem this morning, and even with more selling possibly to come – consider this:
- Tesla IPO’d on 29th June 2010 and since then has returned roughly 21,500% versus the S&P 500, which has turned in about 850%. A 25 to 1 beat. Every $1,000 invested back then would be worth about $215,800 today.
- Apple IPO’d on 12th December 1980 and has returned roughly 350,000% since, including reinvested dividends. The S&P 500, roughly 17,300%. That’s 20 to 1. Every $1,000 invested back then would be worth about $3.5 million today.
- Nvidia began its AI push in 2012 and has returned roughly 56,000% versus about 640% from the S&P 500. An 87 to 1 beat. Every $1,000 invested back then would be worth about $560,000 today.
Imagine how different your life could be… your retirement, education, house, vacations, legacy wealth… if you’d put just a little “extra” money in each of these stocks in addition to your ETFs?! Especially when the markets hit a speed bump, got nasty and put everything “on sale” during all that time.
My point is this.
Love it or hate it, uncertainty is a passenger on your investing journey. So are fear and doubt which is why I want you to do your very best and put both of ‘em in the back seat.
The markets are open right now, which means you have another chance… right now!
Don’t have a decade or more, let alone decades plural?
Fine.
Doesn’t change my point.
Palantir went public just over 6 short years ago and has returned ~1,450% since then versus the S&P 500 which has turned in ~139% over the same time frame. Every $1,000 invested is now worth $15,499.
Your job on days like today is to Buy the Best, Ignore the Rest®.
Sell if you have to – there’s no shame in that – but I encourage you to do everything you can to stay in the game. Adapt your tactics, change your thinking and make some different choices.
Why?
Two reasons.
Buyers have overwhelmingly smashed down the bears EVERY time over time.
And history, btw, suggests that there are 10-15 “Nvidias, Teslas and Palantirs” out there right now which is why keeping your cool and your focus is critically important.
If you have this covered, great. If not, you may find One Bar Ahead® helpful. Members tell me regularly that it’s changed their perspective AND their lives.
5 – Volatility is the price of admission for real wealth and successful investors
The markets are the only store on earth where people fear a “sale.”
Crazy, right?
Buy low and sell high is how you play the game to win.
And to point #3, if you know who you are, it gets easier.
My guess is that you know what to do.
Speaking of which…
It IS issue Friday and that means the November issue of One Bar Ahead® will be hot off the presses later this morning. Enjoy!
Bottom Line
People worry about everything that could go wrong especially when the selling gets nasty.
The world’s most successful investors, on the other hand, build their fortunes by focusing on everything that could go right.
Warren Buffett, Peter Lynch, Sir John Templeton, Abby Joseph Cohen, Geraldine Weiss, Suze Orman… you get the idea. And now, it’s your turn to get busy even if there’s more selling to come.
Remember.
There is always a path to profits.
We may not know exactly where it leads or what the journey looks like but we do know that it’s our job to put one foot in front of the other.
As always, let’s MAKE it a great day — you got this!
Keith 😀
