The reason long-term thinking is important is we have no advantage over the hedge funds and day traders who think in hours, days, and weeks. Even Wall Street analysts and mutual fund managers have a hard time thinking further out than a quarter or two because that’s where their financial incentives lie.Thinking in decades allows us to tune out the noise. And elections are noise!This graphic from Schwab and Morningstar shows just how much $10,000 invested in 1948 would have returned under only Republican presidents, Democrat presidents, or staying invested 100% of the time.Staying invested rather than speculating on the market’s moves is almost always the right answer. It is simple but effective.The Obvious Answer Is Often WrongWhat’s wild is how often the obvious election narrative is wron

Market OverviewThe Dow Jones Industrial Average advanced on Thursday (Oct. 17) to its fourth record close in the last five sessions, as stronger-than-expected monthly retail sales indicated a robust U.S. consumer and TSMC's upbeat forecast buoyed chipmakers' stocks.Regarding the options market, a total volume of 43,204,474 contracts was traded, up 9% from the previous trading day.Top 10 Option VolumesTop 10: $NVDA(NVDA)$, $TSLA(TSLA)$, $TSM(TSM)$, $SMCI(SMCI)$, $AAPL(AAPL)$, $AMD(AMD)$, $AMZN(AMZN)$<

Market OverviewWall Street ended higher on Monday (Oct. 14), with both the S&P 500 and the Dow posting fresh record finishes, as investors bought into technology stocks ahead of a busy week packed with corporate earnings and crucial economic data.Regarding the options market, a total volume of 37,992,846 contracts was traded, down 20% from the previous trading day.Top 10 Option VolumesTop 10: $NVDA(NVDA)$, $TSLA(TSLA)$, $SOFI(SOFI)$, $COIN(COIN)$, $AAPL(AAPL)$, $MSTR(MSTR)$, $AMD(AMD)$,