If you’re a Gen-Xer like me, you probably have put more than a few quarters in pinball machines in your time.   Something about that was just a lot of fun.  Now, imagine yourself inside that machine, and that is what the markets have felt like so far this spring, and as we head into summer, it may not get much better. 

April demonstrated the importance of being prepared for market uncertainty. The month began with the White House’s April 2 tariff announcement on nearly all trading partners. These tariffs were far higher than investors had expected, leading to fears of rising inflation, a global economic slowdown, and a trade war. Stock markets reacted with the sharpest declines since the pandemic.

In today's volatile market, even seasoned investors can fall prey to knee-jerk reactions that erode long-term returns. Our latest article,

Warren Buffet has said that we will see who is wearing a bathing suit when the tide goes out. We have enjoyed two years of remarkable growth in the equity markets while the bond markets have languished for many years. Much as innovation is often slow to be adopted in the tech space, it is much slower in the investing space.

In the early 1950s, computers were the size of buildings and used fragile vacuum tubes that consumed enormous amounts of power and generated a lot of heat. A former IBM Chairman once said, “I think there is a world market for about five computers.”   

Throughout history, widely held beliefs have been proven incorrect. In the 19th century, for example, Scurvy was believed to have been caused by bad weather, poor hygiene, and a number of other things.

In the early 1950s, computers were the size of buildings and used fragile vacuum tubes that consumed enormous amounts of power and generated a lot of heat. A former IBM Chairman once said, “I think there is a world market for about five computers.” Semiconductor chips were invented by the mid-1950s, which were smaller, faster, more efficient, and performed calculations faster. From there, things paused a bit until the first PC that could sit on your desk was invented....