Happy Star Wars Day! As many of you know, Star Wars is huge in my family of boys. There are so many Star Wars related LEGO sets in my home that I literally want to cry. Not sure why two Millenium Falcons are necessary… Our dog is named Chewbacca (“Chewie”) only after we nixed their top choice of Darth Vader. Recently, the Wall Street Journal interviewed Mellody Hobson, co-CEO of an investment management firm AND spouse of George Lucas. I thought it would be appropriate to share her advice to investors today:

“My major thing I would say is don’t sell. It’s just the most important piece of advice I could give. Don’t sell into the panic. Warren Buffet has this quote where he says, basically, “Buy the panic.” It’s just something that is so hard for people to understand the permanent damage they do to their portfolios when they sell and take these kinds of losses. If you can ride out the tough periods, it inevitably works in your favor. All of the data shows it. I can go back and we can look at a hundred years of crises and see the recovery that takes place in the next 12 to 24 months after that it’s almost always very positive, with few exceptions.”

While everyone’s financial situation is different, the key thing to remember is your decision to buy or sell stocks should not be based solely on fear or panic. It’s important to keep perspective.

Let me know if you have any questions about investing or putting together a financial plan that works for you. May the Force be with you.