I started working from home on Friday, November 13th. My mother-in-law has six added risk factors for COVID-19, and my family wanted to go visit her and others for Thanksgiving. That means my wife, my daughter, and I stopped seeing anyone from another household long enough to be sure we didn’t have the virus before we planned to leave home.
Friday, November 20th, my family decided not to travel for Thanksgiving. The dramatic rise in Midwest COVID cases ultimately prevented us from going. This is what my colleague Conner would call, “Good process, bad result.”
Don’t stop at the results when you evaluate a decision. You also need to look at the process to determine if there’s anything that should be changed. I chose to stay home and not see friends or coworkers for a week and it didn’t work out. That’s okay. I followed this exact same process back in August and had a wonderful visit with my in-laws. The process worked fine. Luck wasn’t on my side this time.
The same thing can happen with investments. Sometimes bad results come from poor planning. Sometimes bad results come despite good planning. Take the time to figure out the difference. Then move forward and learn from bad results.
I hope you had a safe and Happy Thanksgiving!
About the Author: John O’Connor
John has more than ten years experience as an Investment Advisor. He focuses on devising and maintaining portfolios that meet individuals’ needs, investment research, and investment strategy. John has been recognized as a “FIVE STAR wealth manager” by Twin Cities Business Magazine 2016-2020.Legal Disclaimer: These posts do not constitute an offer or recommendation to buy or sell any securities or instruments or to participate in any particular investment or trading strategy. They are for informational purposes only. CTW gathers its data from sources it considers reliable. However, CTW makes no express or implied warranties regarding the accuracy of this information or any opinions expressed by the author and may update or change them without prior notification.