It’s easy to be confident when stocks or property prices are going up. But when you read negative news like unemployment rates rising or property prices falling, it’s easy to lose confidence.

Here are some tips on remaining confident, no matter what the headlines say.

Have a positive mindset

With confidence things seem more achievable. Just like getting in the right mindset or a job interview or overcoming a personal challenge. It’s no different with investing.  Investing with a fear mentality to begin with can prevent investors from finding opportunities, recovering money from past losses or making the right decisions.

Some investors view risk completely different to a confident or experienced investor. Everyone has a different perspective of risk. Know where your limits are so you are able to tolerate market fluctuations.  Get in the mindset that accepts that prices do fall and develop a mental strategy on how to stay calm and move forward positively.

Be well prepared

The way you feel confident about what you’re doing in anything is to feel like you know what you’re doing. Confidence comes from education and research.  Investing
in what you understand and know will help you reach your financial goals.  Seek advice from professionals if you are unsure.

Change your focus

It’s a high possibility that sometime throughout investing a decision you make won’t go as planned. This of course can drop your confidence, but don’t let your past stop your future progress. By learning from where you went wrong you can make better decisions and move forward. Focus on what you can achieve, not what you haven’t achieved.

Don’t panic

When you hear bad news it’s natural to start wanting to act based on this information. However, if you sell during down times out of fear (rather than circumstances) you could miss out on the inevitable upswing, which can sometimes happen quickly.  Don’t let short-term bumps in the road distract you from your plan.

Think long-term

Although people have different ideas about when they want to retire and with how much, it’s important to have these end goals in mind. A slow and steady approach always wins long-term. Remember, you need to have flexibility for your short-term goals so they can meet the outcomes of the long-term game.