3 Things 3-2-26

 Thing One

Play The Long Game

In early 2009, the world felt like it was coming apart. The financial crisis was in full swing, major banks had failed, unemployment was rising, and fear dominated every headline. The S&P 500 had fallen nearly 50% from its highs. It didn’t feel like an opportunity. It felt like the end.

But history tells a different story.

If you had invested $1,000 into a simple S&P 500 index fund at the market lows in 2009 and done nothing but reinvest the dividends, that $1,000 would be worth roughly $11,000 to $12,000 today. No stock picking. No trading strategy. No insider insight. Just broad-market exposure and patience. That’s roughly an elevenfold increase over about 17 years.

The driver wasn’t luck. It was compounding. From 2009 forward, the market entered one of the strongest and longest bull runs in history. Corporate earnings rebounded. Innovation accelerated. Technology giants like Apple, Microsoft, and Amazon expanded dramatically. Dividends were paid and reinvested. Over time, those returns stacked on top of each other, and then returns began earning returns of their own.

What makes this especially powerful is how simple the math becomes when you scale it. If $1,000 turned into about $11,000, then $10,000 would have grown to roughly $110,000. Add another zero, and $100,000 becomes approximately $1.1 million. The percentage return is the same. The only thing that changes is the starting principal. Compounding doesn’t care how many zeros you begin with — it simply multiplies.

Now, it’s fair to say that not everyone had $100,000 available to invest in 2009. Most people didn’t. But there are moments in life when larger sums of money do appear. An inheritance. A life insurance payout. The sale of a business. The sale of real estate. A legal settlement. A major bonus. In those moments, the decision of what to do next carries enormous long-term consequences.

A lump sum that sits idle slowly loses purchasing power. A lump sum invested thoughtfully in a broad index can quietly transform into generational wealth over time. The difference often isn’t complexity — it’s discipline and patience.

The real takeaway isn’t regret over missing 2009. Markets move in cycles, and there will always be another downturn, another moment when fear is high and confidence is low. The deeper lesson is that markets recover, economies grow, and compounding works relentlessly over long periods. Time in the market consistently proves more powerful than trying to time the market.

A single $1,000 investment became five figures. Add a zero and you’re talking six figures. Add two zeros and you’re looking at seven. The math is straightforward. The discipline is the challenge.

And when significant capital comes into your life — whether through insurance proceeds, inherited wealth, or the sale of an asset — the decision to invest rather than hesitate can turn a temporary event into a lasting legacy.

Thing Two  

4 Tips For Dealing With Bad Investing Impulses

(The following is from an article on thebalance.com by Dana Anspatch that discusses how to avoid making emotional investing decisions)

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1. Do Nothing

A conscious and thoughtful decision to do nothing is still a form of action. Have your financial goals changed? If your portfolio was built around your long-term goals (as it should be), a short-term change in markets shouldn't matter.

2. Know That Your Money Is Like a Bar of Soap

To quote Gene Fama Jr., a famed economist, “Your money is like a bar of soap. The more you handle it, the less you’ll have.”

3. Never Sell Equities in a Down Market

If your funds are allocated correctly, you should never have a need to sell equities during a down-market cycle. This holds true even if you are taking income.

Just as you wouldn’t run out and put a for-sale sign on your home when the housing market turns south, don’t rush to sell equities when the stock market goes through a bear market cycle. Wait it out.

4. Trust That Science Works

A disciplined approach to investing delivers higher market returns. Yeah, it’s boring; but it works. If you don't have discipline, you probably shouldn't be managing your own investments.

Thing Three

Just A Thought  

11 Things People Learn Too Late in Life

1. The less you say, the more your words will matter.

2. Don't take everything personally—not everyone thinks about you as much as you do.

3. When you focus on problems, you'll have more problems. When you focus on possibilities, you'll have more opportunities.

4. No matter how much it hurts now, someday you'll look back and realize your struggles changed your life for the better.

5. You can't make someone love you by giving them more of what they already don't appreciate.

6. Never be afraid to try something new. Life gets boring when you stay within the limits of what you already know.

7. Take note of the moment you begin to take things for granted—that's the moment you need to appreciate them more.

8. The things you think about going into the future are the things you do now.

9. Life is the only time anyone has—no one knows what comes next.

10. Looking back on your life, you'll regret the things you didn't do more than the ones you did.

11. The only person you need to be better than is yourself.