Long Term Investments vs. Short Term Investments

My strategy focuses on near term results, and reflects a belief that long term goals are reached through the accomplishment of a series of short term goals. Some investors consider that and say, "Well, I'm a long term investor." Come now, I'm a long term investor, too! I'm not trying to create impressive short term gains just so I can counter them with spectacular losses come tax season! Frequently the "buy and hold"er is someone who actually does not have a strategy (Occasionally buying a mutual fund is not a strategy), but has found a catch phrase which provides adequate comfort for the unsettling aspects of retirement. For someone who is uninformed to claim Buy and Holderism because he is a "long term" investor is like claiming you don't check your oil often because you intend to own that car for a long, long time.

To wit, "long term" investing is not the only way to go. Consider that if all you gained was 5% every three months, your annual return, after compounding, would be 21.5% . That is better than most funds! Perhaps we've found a home for the micromanagers of the world.