"Old Folks" - Let's put things in perspective for the younger folks

[myself]

Would any of you "older folks" care to share your stories about the 1987 stock market crash and what happened afterwards, to perhaps help alleviate some of the fears the younger folks may be feeling right now?

How did the market affect me. Well directly it didn't.
Indirectly, It did have an effect on me.
I was in a work-study program at high school. And I lost my job. I blamed everything in President Reagan at the time. In hindsight, he made some very difficult economic decisions around that time, and they appear to have been the right decisions.
2001-2002 was a different time for me, since I was in the market at the time. I lost about 30%, however I got out early enough, after having previously gained 50%, and I let things ride for a few months in a money market account.
Since then, I've been taking some chances in/out of the market, making between 16%/yr up to 24%/yr.
Most of the folks that are smarter than me (which includes probably 3/4 of the rest of the world ), suggest that merely saving 15%-20% of your pay into various investments is your best strategy. Of course, the minimum would be 10% (anyone read "The Millionaire Next Door" lately ).

As for DisneySteve's comment about "middle-aged". I'm supposedly past the generic "middle-aged", although I'm not quite to what I'd consider middle-aged yet, since I still have one grandmother kickin' around at 93 years old this year!

Nothing makes young people stop listening faster than "old folks" trying to impart wisdom on them.

[Like2Plan]

Nothing makes young people stop listening faster than "old folks" trying to impart wisdom on them.

That is a shame. Over the years, I have had financial "mentors". They have always been "old folks" imparting wisdom. I can't say any of the advice hurt me any.

[disneysteve]

Nothing makes young people stop listening faster than "old folks" trying to impart wisdom on them.

I've often said that life would be so much easier if we would learn from other people's mistakes, not just from our own.

I guess my point is that it's probably not a good idea for "old folks" to come right out and say "I know better and I'm going to give you some wisdom." That's a sure-fire way to make your words go in one ear and out the other. There are subtler ways to impart wisdom, IMHO.

(Not sure if I'm "old" or not, I'm in my 30's.)

[Ima saver]

Believe me , you are not old. The 30's and 40's are the best years in life!

[Like2Plan]

I guess my point is that it's probably not a good idea for "old folks" to come right out and say "I know better and I'm going to give you some wisdom." That's a sure-fire way to make your words go in one ear and out the other. There are subtler ways to impart wisdom, IMHO.

(Not sure if I'm "old" or not, I'm in my 30's.)

I got the impression that the OP did not mean for folks to impart wisdom, but rather was looking for how things turned out for folks who were around back then and how they weathered the storm... It is probably making an assumption that if you were a younster, you probably most likely were not investing in the 1987 market. (Although, you never know--every once in a while you read about an under 18 type investing in the market, so it could be possible.... )

[scfr]

I got the impression that the OP did not mean for folks to impart wisdom, but rather was looking for how things turned out for folks who were around back then and how they weathered the storm...

Correct - It was a way for those for those of us who were around back then to offer reassurance to those who might be getting a bit freaked out by the market's current flucutations. But perhaps some youngsters so turned off by the use of the term "old folks" that they did not bother to read the original post.

And I agree that if you ignore what someone has to say simply because they are older, you might be missing out on some very valuable lessons. I learned a lot from my grandfather, who learned a lot from his own father (my great-grandfather), who not only survived the stock market crash of the 20's and the Great Depression but actually thrived during it.

[myself]

I guess my point is that it's probably not a good idea for "old folks" to come right out and say "I know better and I'm going to give you some wisdom." That's a sure-fire way to make your words go in one ear and out the other. There are subtler ways to impart wisdom, IMHO.

(Not sure if I'm "old" or not, I'm in my 30's.)

I agree with some of the other posters. It didn't say "my way's the highway, so you'd better listen" (as you implied).

I'm 43, so I'm not quite sure I'm considered "old-folks" either.

I've known people that got "very comfortable" buying Microsoft stock nearly 25 years ago.
I also know people who swear they don't have two wooden nickels to rub together (but still continue to think their only "relief" from their life is smoking cigarettes - and no, I'm not kidding).
And down to the worst of 'em where they're wallowing in self-pity so much they think their only relief (from a life that they admittedly screwed up), is to shoot heroin.

What have I learned through life so far. Even the very bold pain in the *ss people who think they know it all, sometimes provide information that you may be able to used by me.


People should learn from both old folks and young folks alike!