“The sky is falling!  If my chosen candidate doesn’t win, the markets are doomed and so are my investments.”

In this article, Bijan Golkar points out that a presidential election can cause excitement or despair depending on if you are a Republican or a Democrat and who the major parties nominate for the highest and most powerful office in the world.

The article discusses market returns both before and after a presidential election year and some of the underlying reasons for market volatility.  Then the article stresses the importance of a person’s long-term goals and a plan for long-term growth as opposed to “emotional investing.”  Finally, the article discusses the pros and cons of our economy that could affect investment values.

For more information, click here. 

Teaching Suggestions

You may want to use the information in this blog post and the original article to

• Discuss the importance of a long-term investment plan that will take advantage of the time value of money.
• Describe some of the pitfalls of “emotional investing.”

Discussion Questions

1. What are the typical characteristics of an emotional investor? Of a long-term investor?
2. What are the advantages of a long-term investment program when compared to “emotional investing?”