Checking your net worth every day is a bad idea

A colleague looked unusually sad for the last few days.
So I decided to have a small chat with him.
The reason for his distress was quite surprising.
He has a habit of checking his #NetWorth every single day!

With the current #geopolitical situation and markets correcting, his portfolio value has been in the Red. Every morning he wakes up, opens the app, sees his net worth down… and his mood is ruined for the entire day.
Worse, that feeling carries through the day and even starts affecting his work.

Whether we like it or not, most of us are #emotional about our #investments.
And that’s often where we lose the battle of building long-term #wealth.

So I asked him a simple question:
“Do you need this money right now?”
He said No. The investments are meant for his long-term goals!
Then why worry about daily market movements?
Markets go up. Markets go down.
Most gains and losses are notional until they are realized!

Given that most of his equity investments are through #MutualFunds, tracking them every day isn’t really necessary. For long-term investors, reviewing the portfolio every few months is usually enough, unless there are major changes in goals or asset allocation.
Even during volatile periods, #AssetAllocation matters far more than emotions.

So I gave him one simple suggestion:
If an app is making you anxious every morning, better to uninstall it. The app can be installed again when the time comes for the next review.
Sometimes the biggest threat to your investments isn’t the market…
It’s how often you look at it and the emotions driving the decisions!