NEW YORK (Reuters) – When you see soda on sale at the supermarket, do you run screaming into the parking lot in a panic? Or do you buy six?
A pedestrian walks on Wall St., as concerns about coronavirus disease (COVID-19) keep more people at home, in front of the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) in New York, U.S., March 18, 2020. REUTERS/Lucas Jackson
This is the analogy Peter Palion, a certified financial planner in New York, uses to calm worried clients about volatility in the stock market and keep them on their slow and steady retirement savings path.
While logical, it is a hard sell for many. As the market drops precipitously, it may seem like you are throwing good money after bad to keep contributing a percentage of your income to a 401(k) or a similar workplace retirement plan when you have an urgent need for cash. But as we learned from the recession in 2008-2009, stopping regular contributions and pulling out of stocks left investors further behind than those who stayed the…