Topic: How To Invest

What is Pat’s commentary for the week of March 5, 2019

Article Excerpt

When reading the investment and stock market news each day, it pays to take note of your mindset. This is a kind of mental filter that can colour your view of what’s going on in the world. It can determine what news you pay attention to, how much of it you retain in long-term memory, and what you dwell on when making investment decisions. The wrong mindset can lead to a negative, if not catastrophic, view of the market outlook. It’s almost as if you are brainstorming about what can go wrong in the economy, while downplaying what can go right. This leads to a focus on negative but low-likelihood outcomes. That’s especially so in the U.S., where Republicans and Democrats both feel the other party is out to destroy the country. Similar differences of political opinion exist in Canada, but in typically less extreme Canadian fashion. However, the gap may get wider as we get closer to the deadline for the…