| There were numerous big hits, clutch pitches, and strong defensive plays that contributed to the Dodgers winning the game and the series. But they won that game because Mookie Betts didn't give up on an easy ground ball. He ran hard the whole way. It's rare for a team to win a championship without doing those little things right. Home runs are exciting, but the small things that don't make it into the highlight reels - like taking an extra base, making the right throw, or running hard when others might not - are what ultimately lead to putting a championship ring on your finger. Investing is the same way. Sure, we all want those "home run" investments, where one of our stocks goes up hundreds of percentage points. It's certainly exciting when that happens. But the way to help your portfolio win a "championship" - that is, provide you with the nest egg and/or income that you need in order to live the life you want - is by making sure you do the little things. So what are those little things? 1. Stay invested. The most important factor in investing success is not which stocks you pick. It's how long you stay invested. The longer you're invested, the better results you'll have. In last week's Oxford Income Live, a live monthly video discussion with Oxford Income Letter subscribers, I talked about the stock market's returns during each presidential administration going back to President Eisenhower. The top five performances were for two-term presidents (and, notably, it was a mixture of Republicans and Democrats). Since the market goes up over the long term, it makes sense that it would do better over a random eight-year period than a random four-year period. 2. Keep putting money to work. The hardest thing to do is to keep buying when the market is falling. Yet that's exactly the action you should take. You're never going to time the market perfectly and know when the bottom has just occurred. But if you invest at regular intervals - whether that's monthly, quarterly, twice a year, etc. - you will ensure that you're buying during both bull markets and bear markets, and the prices will even out over time. Importantly, you also won't miss out on big bull runs that you never saw coming. 3. Manage your risk. Use trailing stops so small losses don't become big losses. Also, position size accordingly. Don't have too much exposure to any one stock. The Oxford Club recommends that you invest no more than 4% in any one position - and if you're taking a big swing on a speculative trade, you may want to keep your position size even smaller. Be Like the Dodgers As a Yankees fan, I'm already saying, "Just wait till next year!", but as investors, we don't have that luxury. Every year that goes by without us doing the little things costs us money and shrinks our portfolios. It pains me to say this, but be like the Dodgers and do the little things right. Good investing, Marc P.S. What other "little things" can you think of that are essential to being a successful investor? Click the button below to leave a comment and let me know your thoughts. (And if you'd like to offer me your condolences about the Yankees while you're at it, I wouldn't mind.) | 
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