At the start of April, my portfolios looked grim.
My individual retirement account had dropped 22%, and my taxable account was down 15%. I couldn’t bring myself to check my 401(k).
These weren’t just numbers on a screen. They were gut-check moments, marked by lost gains and growing unrealized losses.
For the first time in 2 1/2 years of stock market investing, I was facing a real test.
My hard-earned dollars, the ones I’d worked so hard to put to work, were losing value: rapidly. And no one knew how long the pain would last.
Each day, watching my portfolios bleed red, I felt the weight. Every decision I had made over the years was now under a microscope. The sense of control I once felt over my financial future seemed fragile, even delusional.
But I reminded myself: this was part of the journey. Volatility, uncertainty and dips. They’re inherent to investing.
The real test wasn’t how I felt, but how I would react.
My low point came on April 4, when CNN’s Business Fear & Greed Index — the sentiment gauge of investor emotions — hit its lowest reading in years.
On a scale of 0 to 100, scores below 25 signal “extreme fear.” At the market close on April 4, the index stood at just four.
Tariff talks had investors spooked.
By April 8, the index had fallen to three, the lowest since the COVID-19 lockdowns in 2020.
At that point, I stopped checking altogether. I had to trust the process.
I reminded myself why I started investing in the first place: not for quick wins, but for long-term growth. The market has always been volatile, and every dip eventually recovers.
My job was simple: stay the course.
To do that, I had to rely on patience, discipline and unwavering faith in the strategy I’d been building for years.
So instead of panic selling, I did the opposite. I bought the dip. I treated the downturn like a sale at my favorite store and stocked up on bargains.
But my shopping spree didn’t last long.
I had braced myself for a prolonged downturn, mentally preparing for more red days and uncertainty. I anticipated months of doubt and waiting.
Then, everything changed. On April 9, the U.S. announced a 90-day pause on higher tariffs, just as sweeping levies were set to hit some of America’s biggest trade partners.
The reversal sparked a chain reaction that sent markets soaring, pushing them back toward all-time highs. Here’s a quick snapshot.
- On April 9, the S&P 500 surged 9.52%, its third-largest single-day gain since WWII.
- The market rallied for nine consecutive sessions from late April to early May, its longest winning streak since 2004.
- By May 13, the S&P 500 had erased all its year-to-date losses and reclaimed nearly $8 trillion in market value.
- In just 25 days, the market swung from a 15% loss to positive territory.
By the market close on May 16, the Fear & Greed Index had jumped to 71.
Just like that, the bargains I’d picked up were back in the green. Some even posted solid gains.
More than a test of strategy, the ongoing tariff saga has delivered a test of nerve. But when the fire came to my front door, I didn’t flinch.
I stayed calm, confident and disciplined. I stayed invested and even bought more.
In the process, I became a more resilient, battle-tested investor — one who knows that conviction is most important when it’s hardest to hold.
A new column by Darnell Mayberry brings readers along his journey toward teaching his young daughter, Parker, about financial literacy.
