With so much uncertainty in the world most investors/traders get anxious and worried over losing money and start listening to market sages and so-called prophets. That is typical and quite natural, yet when the underwear starts getting tight and we begin to sweat because the markets are misbehaving, well we tend to reach for whatever (or, whomever) makes the most sense. To top the list of uncertainties include the upcoming election, which many are starting to believe is to be a Hillary Clinton win, and Fed policy (a December rate hike?) which is subject to change by the day.
The fact nobody really knows what the final outcome will be creates a level of discomfort so deep into the long term bull market rally.
When the unknowns are out there we often sidle up to those who seem to know, offering some perspective based on historical events or just experience. Wouldn't it be nice to follow the lead of someone who has been through the wars more often? Yet, I have trouble trusting the information as I do not know the motivation - is someone offering advice just for publicity purposes? Are they talking their book?
I heard someone out there recently claiming to be 'the prophet', which I thought quite amusing. We hear all kinds of predictions regularly about markets but rarely do those ever come to pass. There are no market prophets, those claiming to have knowledge to see the future with clarity are just snake oil salesmen. Yet, we tend to listen to such gibberish when we don't know ourselves, looking for the right answer - bad source. If anything, we should run away as fast as possible. The market will always tell the truth.
The business media trots out some 'stars' often to try and give some market perspective, but this tends to be self-serving and complicates matters for the viewer. Recently we heard veiled warnings about a pending 'doom and gloom' scenario that was going to threaten markets - some even suggesting to 'get out of the market'. This was based on little evidence but opinion-based. Are you kidding me?
We should always listen and pay attention to the market signals and NOT those claiming to 'know it all' with some great certainty. If the market shows signs of cracking, we'll see it - we just don't need to be told over and over again by the boy who cried wolf. Like a broken clock is right twice a day, these slayers will eventually be right - but how much opportunity was lost if you followed them? Plenty!