This all sounds great when the market only goes up, but don't forget that when the market took a hit in 2000, it was 15 years before the Nasdaq returned to where it was before the hit occurred.
Exactly why it is said there are no guarantees short term.
you also don't mention the market TRIPLED from 1995 to 2000.
HOWEVER
it is 100% guaranteed fact that the market goes up over time. yes there are hiccups along the way.
It is also notable to mention that downturn went from Sept of 2000 all the way down to it's bottom in Sept of 2002. If you didn't pull your money out during that time you would have been a fool. And if you did. you could have gotten back in the market after it hit bottom, and rode it up again.
Which brings up my next talking point.
ALWAYS SET A STOP LOSS
I prefer 20% on any investment.
If you don't know what that is, it means if whatever you are invested in goes down 20% you sell, take a step back and see what the market does from there. There is no glory in watching an investment go down 60%.
WORTH LOOKING AT
Interactive chart of the S&P 500 stock market index since 1927. Historical data is inflation-adjusted using the headline CPI and each data point represents the month-end closing value. The current month is updated on an hourly basis with today's latest value.
www.macrotrends.net