Money is always an emotional subject, but often when our emotions get involved with our investments we will make wrong decisions. And that can be a costly mistake.

Keeping emotions and investing separate seems almost impossible for many investors. When reacting too quickly and letting emotions cloud judgment, even the most experienced investors do not make the best decisions. However, keeping emotions away from investment decisions can give you a better chance for success.

Here are four tips on how to keep emotions and investing separate:

Tip #1: Set Financial Goals

It sounds so simple, but setting financial goals really is the first step to investing, and financial goals can keep emotions out of the picture if done correctly. Having goals will help you keep an eye on the big picture.

For example, if you are saving for retirement in 30 years, you know that you have more time to make up for any losses than if you plan to retire in 5 years. These goals can also keep you focused on what you need to do today to get there.

Tip #2: Stop Checking on Your Performance Every Day

Do you check up on your investments every day, sometimes spending hours figuring out how you’re doing and what you could have done better if you had just moved your investments around? If so, you are just going to drive yourself crazy because all you’ll really see will be market gyrations and mistakes you think you could have avoided.

Checking too often will not benefit your portfolio in any way, but it will cause anxiety. This is even more true if you own individual stocks as checking stock prices too often can cause you to panic, and you might make a snap judgment to trade. Instead, keep your checks to monthly or quarterly, and concentrate on sticking to your overall plan and goals.

Tip #3: Know the Risks in What You Buy

Again, it sounds so simple, but knowing what you are buying is crucial to help you avoid emotional setbacks in investing. Always do your own research before purchasing anything, even if you have outside assistance.

Understand what the investment is, how it will help you achieve your goals, what the risks are, and when and how to exit. Without your own research, you will not take full responsibility for your trades, introducing negative emotions.

Tip #4: Create a Professional Buffer

You can create some distance between yourself and your investments by putting a financial advisor in the middle of the two.

By entrusting a neutral third party who can help you examine your situation objectively and encourage you to stay on track, you can hold yourself more accountable for the things that you can actually control.

Regardless of whether business is booming and you are constantly busy, or times are slack and you are struggling to grow your business, it may seem as if the stress involved with running a business is never-ending. However, by adjusting your approach to time management and reviewing your priorities, you can break the cycle of stress and start to feel more satisfied and in control of your life.

Where to Begin

If you are uncertain about where to begin, keep track of your activities over the course of a typical week or two.

• What time do you get up in the morning?
• How many hours do you spend in the office?
• How much time do you spend commuting?
• Do you have time for exercise and dinner with family?
• Do you take work home with you on evenings and weekends?
• Are eating patterns, alcohol, or caffeine consumption hindering your ability to wind down at night and wake up refreshed in the morning?

Next, analyze how you allocate your time at work.

• Have you been attending unnecessary meetings?
• Do you often take on responsibilities that could be handled by others?
• Do you spend too much time on certain tasks?
• Can you delegate less essential functions to other staff?

Finding Solutions through Patterns

Simply by recognizing your patterns, you may be able to identify areas where you could improve your habits and minimize stress. For example, you may be accustomed to making and receiving client phone calls throughout the day, even when commuting or working out. While it is important to be accessible to clients, perennial interruptions can interfere with your ability to concentrate or relax.

One possible solution could involve designating time to make and receive calls. Then, allow another staff member to handle any non-urgent or routine matters, as well as set up appointments to ensure that a client is available for your return call. By establishing a schedule, you may find that you can handle calls more quickly and efficiently, while also freeing up time to focus on other work or leisure.

Break the Cycle of Stress

Taking time out to take care of your health and maintain relationships with family and friends is essential to a balanced and fulfilled life. Schedule regular vacations from the office, and set aside time in the evenings and on the weekend for outdoor or other recreational activities. Leave your phone and laptop behind.

If you continue to feel stressed throughout the work day, or even after leaving the office, consider your professional approach. If you find that you often feel anxious in the course of your day, especially in certain situations, assess your attitudes and negotiating skills. If you worry about making mistakes or delegating responsibilities to others, consider the possibility that your perfectionism may be hindering your efficiency and adding to your stress.

Because everybody is different, there is no one-size-fits-all approach to stress management. But, by taking an honest and thorough inventory of your professional and personal life, you can identify self-defeating patterns, take the steps necessary to end the cycle of overwork, and begin to feel more satisfied and fulfilled both personally and professionally.

Risk tolerance is a highly individual matter. A portfolio that keeps one investor awake at night may let another sleep soundly. However, investors must be willing to accept a certain risk level to receive investment returns in the form of interest or capital gains.

All investments carry a tradeoff between risk and return—generally, the higher the risk, the higher the potential return—or loss. Conversely, the lower the risk, the lower the potential return or loss. The goal is to find the right level of risk that provides the returns you need, while letting you get a good night’s rest.

Temperament, age, stage in life, investment experience, financial goals, and time horizons are all factors that affect one’s risk tolerance. Following is a brief discussion of some of these points to help you assess your own personal risk tolerance:

Know Your Risk Tolerance

• Temperament. Not everyone is comfortable taking financial risks. Just because someone is a weekend extreme rock climber doesn’t necessarily mean that this risk-taking behavior extends to his or her finances. When selecting investments, it is important to bear in mind that different types carry different degrees of risk, and also that returns for specific investment types may vary over time. For instance, stock market returns that have historically risen over the long term have experienced wide short-run fluctuations. Looking back at the historic 1973–1975 recession, the stock market dropped by 46%. Ask yourself: “How well would I have weathered that loss?”
• Age and Stage in Life. Single investors may be able to carry more risk than married couples with children. Individuals just embarking on their careers and building wealth can usually take on more risk than those nearing, or already in, retirement.
• Investment Experience. Sophisticated investors, who understand capital markets and are knowledgeable about specific investments, can typically assume more risk than novices.
• Financial Goals and Time Horizons. Another consideration is the amount of time you have to meet your financial goals—that is, your time horizon. For example, if you begin saving for retirement early, you can generally afford to assume a higher degree of risk. While it is not wise to take on more risk than you are comfortable with, remember that the amount of risk you are willing to carry may potentially affect the level of return you can expect.

Reassess Periodically

It is prudent to assess your risk tolerance before beginning an investment program. Then, reassess it periodically as you progress through life’s major stages, such as when starting a family, changing jobs, or approaching retirement. Understanding your risk tolerance can help guide your investment decisions, and help you sleep more soundly at night.

Follow up with a Strong Valley financial advisor to better understand the context of your unique goals and situation.

It often seems as if summer lasts from Easter to Halloween. But we typically see the hottest of the hot days (the “dog days” of summer) in late July and August. And this raises some concern for keeping safe and cool. Seniors may be at higher risk of heat-related maladies as they are less likely to sense and respond to changes in temperature. Additionally, as we grow older, our bodies become less efficient at regulating body temperature. Certain health conditions and medications can also make it more difficult for the body to regulate its temperature or to perspire.

Fortunately, there are several things we can do to stay safe and cool, even in the midst of summer’s hottest days.

Stay Hydrated

For many our sensitivity to heat dulls as we age, so does our awareness of thirst. This, along with our body’s ability to conserve water as we grow older, put seniors at greater risk of dehydration.

Summer heat adds to the risk, because on hot days, the body loses water more quickly. Here are some tips to staying hydrated this summer.

• Don’t wait until you’re thirsty to take in fluids. If you’re thirsty, you’re already dehydrated.
• Avoid caffeine and alcohol as these can cause the body to lose even more fluid.
• Eat lots of fresh fruit, a wonderful source of fluids – not everything has to be water.
• Add fresh lemon or lime to your water to add a little flavor.
• Use water to dilute fruit juices, making them last longer and increasing your fluid intake.
• Get creative! Make “mocktails,” like non-alcoholic daiquiris and pina coladas.

If you are on a fluid-restricted diet, consult your physician about how to get the fluids you need during the hot summer months.

Other Tips to Beat the Heat

Here are some other ways to beat the heat this summer:

• Keep your home safe and comfortable by running the air conditioning during the hottest parts of the day and by letting in cool air in the early morning and late evening hours.
• If your home isn’t air-conditioned, take a break during the hottest part of the day by going to a movie, shopping at an indoor mall, or visiting a library.
• Dress in lightweight, light-colored, and loose-fitting clothing, make of natural fabrics, like linen or cotton.
• If you must go outside (gardening, errands), plan this for the early morning hours, when it’s coolest.
• Take a cool shower or bath.
• Get plenty of rest.

Enjoy your summer!

With a little diligence and preparation, we should be able to enjoy these dog days of summer safely.

As summer heats up, it pays to take a good look at how flexible you are. When you plan for the future, you need to be adaptable. No one knows what tomorrow holds.

This is certainly true in the world of work. To some, labor merely is about a job or the lack thereof. For others, the concept of labor transcends a job. It’s about a career, economic stability for self and family, satisfaction, fulfillment, success, and a sense of mission – a calling. Consider a young person attempting to think about a future of work that may span 50 to 60 years or more. How does one grasp a fast-changing world to formulate a job or career strategy, and an investment strategy to accumulate capital needed to fund their secure future?

Don’t Be Left Behind

Have you ever participated in one of those “future think” company planning sessions? You know, the one that asks where you want the company to be 5, 10 and 15 years hence?

Recent years have taught us that the marketplace in five years could be totally different from what we’re experiencing today. If businesses do not change the plan as they go along, they could be left behind, becoming obsolete and less profitable.

Flexibility counts. Anticipating change counts, with Plan B or even C at the ready. A plan, whether a career plan, a financial plan or a life transitions plan is a road map. Every road is subject to disruption, detours, potential dead ends and rabbit trails.

Yes, you want a concept of where you will be in one, five, 10 years and beyond. But any plan must be dynamic, fluid and adaptable. You cannot set it and forget it.

The Market Isn’t Static

Every money manager has a turnover ratio, on average selling a certain percentage of stocks every year. Stock buys may disappoint and underperform. Other stocks may reach a targeted sell point and be sold in favor of a better bargain.

Asset classes may underperform or outperform in the short run and then change direction. Assumptions may appear wrong near term and turn out to be sound in the long run. Diversification is important, as crystal balls are fallible.

Review Your “What If” Plan

Everyone, whether a breadwinner, a stay-at-home parent, a retiree or an investor, should have a contingency plan to deal with personal setbacks, career reverses and market disruptions because stuff happens. Change is the only constant. Well, death and taxes, also. Have you reviewed your “what if?” plans lately?

Have you reviewed next year’s tax strategy? Already we hear of end-of-year Christmas and holiday promotions. Have you started planning for next year?

May your summer be flexible.

Amid the draining heat of mid-summer, do you remember your New Year’s resolutions regarding your personal financial planning? How are you coming with your to-do list?

Time passes. Our children grow up and we get older. Sand keeps passing through the hourglass of our earthly sojourn. The year is over half gone. Soon children will start back to school and traffic will worsen. The summer break for most will be over. So, it’s high time to get done what you need to get done.

As a financial planner, it’s amazing to see the number of people with no wills or obsolete wills. Such a lapse in planning is especially critical in a marriage with minor children in the mix. An old will is better than no will, but it carries potential problems for minors, especially if both parents die at once, or a single parent passes on.

Often the bulk of a couple’s savings, or that of a single parent, resides in retirement plans. There too, money passing to a minor presents problems. Have you checked both the primary and contingent beneficiary designations on retirement accounts, and personal and group insurance policies?

For those with young children, have you funded a 529 college savings plan? Anyone, a parent or a grandparent, annually may gift to such a college plan. Gifts are made with after-tax dollars but the money grows tax-free and may be spent tax-free to meet qualified college and graduate school expenses.

How are you coming with plans to pay down debt and build savings outside of your retirement plans? Think about creating Your Personal Freedom Fund – a pool of liquid capital equal to at least one-year’s worth of living expenses. Living paycheck to paycheck is motivation-draining stress. Liquid and available capital creates peace of mind and freedom to roll with the punches or pursue opportunities.

If you are a key breadwinner in a family or household, are you adequately insured against the consequences of disability or death? The same question goes for key persons of an enterprise, including business owners. Is there a succession plan? Is it up to date?

August is almost upon us. In less than three short months, Christmas and holiday decorations will pop up in your local mall.

And if you haven’t made progress on your New Year’s Resolutions, don’t worry – you still have time.