Most people chase the next hot stock. One headline, one viral chart, and suddenly the market feels like a stampede. Warren Buffett, meanwhile, sits in his calm little corner buying solid businesses and letting compounding quietly build wealth behind the scenes, like a slow-moving but unstoppable glacier.
Me? My long-term investing style is… personalized. A blend of patience, practicality, optimism, and a touch of "I'd rather wait than sell at a loss.”
I hold some stocks long term partly because I can't sell them at a profit yet, but also because I don't like realizing losses when the company still looks fundamentally healthy. Wendy's (WEN) is a perfect example. Nothing major is wrong with the business, so I hold on, collect dividends, and wait for the market to come around. It's like keeping a dependable appliance: not exciting, but it works, and occasionally it hands you a small reward for your loyalty.
Wendy's (WEN)
Then there are my long-term holdings like TLH and TLT. These are not emotional decisions—these are strategic. I genuinely like treasury bond ETFs for several reasons:
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If interest rates fall, their prices may rise.
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They provide regular dividends, like steady breathing in a chaotic market.
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And most importantly, they serve as a hedge against recession, a kind of financial seatbelt when everything else decides to spin out of control.
The Psychology Behind Long-Term Investing
1. Loss Aversion
Losses might feel about twice as painful as gains feel good. That's why people panic-sell too early or refuse to sell losing positions. Me? I fall into the "I don't like realizing losses" camp but in a controlled way. I avoid selling at a loss only when the company still looks fundamentally fine, not out of denial.
2. The Endowment Effect
Once we own something, we value it more. It's human nature. A stock you hold feels special, even if it's just another ticker to someone else. That's partly why long-term investing works: when you're attached, you're less likely to jump ship at the first sign of trouble.
3. Time Horizon Illusion
People tend to overestimate what will happen in a week, but underestimate what can happen in five years. Buffett-style investors thrive because they see investing as a multi-year story, not a single chapter.
4. Compounding Rewards "Silently"
The brain loves fast feedback like day-trading wins. But compounding? It's slow, quiet, and almost invisible at first. But once it accelerates, it becomes a force that feels almost unfair—if you stuck around long enough to see it.
So Do I Believe in Long-Term Investing?
Yes—in my own style. Some of my long-term positions come from strategy. Some come from actual patience. And some… well, some are long-term simply because I looked at the red numbers and said, "Nope. I'm not selling this when the company isn't even broken." That's not denial—that's commitment. Or at least that's what I tell myself.
What I've learned is that long-term investing is basically a tug-of-war with my own brain. The market moves one inch and suddenly our emotions sprint a marathon. We fight:
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the urge to check our portfolio every five minutes,
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the mini heart attack when something dips,
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and the dramatic voice whispering, "Sell everything and move to a quieter life.”
It's not the market we’re wrestling with—it's us.
And honestly, long-term investing isn't about predicting inflation or interest rates like some economic superhero. I'm not clairvoyant—I'm just trying my best. It's really about building a portfolio that fits me: something steady, something survivable, and something that can handle both market storms and my internal mini-meltdowns.
In the end, long-term investing isn't just a financial decision. It's a mindset, a routine, and occasionally a patience exam I did not sign up for but somehow keep passing with a mix of stubbornness, optimism, and extremely controlled panic.
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