Different experience than I have had, but as I said in another post, I never traded stocks, beyond one ‘dip’ into that world that ended poorly.
I always have stuck with managed mutual fund portfolios that were diversified and balanced to match my desired level of risk. I contributed with every paycheck and pretty much let the managers watch it ‘cook’.
They (First Command) have personally kept me appraised a few times a year and of course I can see statements or check online at anytime. They also have given me sound advice on tax planning that will save me in the order of 7 figures in tax liability over the next 20 years in retirement.
There is/was an upfront cost to that. When I started investing, Roth’s were not around, and I was late in switching, enjoying the pre-tax dollars being invested. But on the back-end, that costs a bundle. I have spent the last few years converting to all Roth’s. This means paying taxes now on those untaxed dollars, but huge savings in the future as the accounts grow and as tax rates go up.
"One dip" is equivalent to resolving to lose weight and improve health by jogging, then going on a single, first 20-minute jog and getting "side stitches," and quitting in disgust.
I began while still in college. Investing money that I had scrimped and saved while dining on the equivalent of ramen noodles. Made a killing, pentupling my investment (broadly diversified) within a year. Wow! $5,000 profit! This was the early 80s.
Took the money and invested in real estate on the Big Island in the late 80s - just as Japan's bubble was bursting. Built some houses and rented for a decade - dealing with chickensh*t renter problems from halfway around the world, and paying 15% to my "estate manager." May have only broken even, but it forced me to economize and stick with the program for ten years - and I learned a lot.
Sold out and invested in the stock market just as "Desert Storm" was brewing. Forced to divest when my investment company declared that I was a pariah/leper in 2016.
Regards,