Remember, our job as investors is pretty simple – protect ou...

Remember, our job as investors is pretty simple – protect our investment capital from short-term destruction so we can play the long-term investment game. Here are our thoughts on this.
• Capital preservation is always the primary objective. If you lose your capital, you are out of the game.
• Seek a rate of return sufficient to keep pace with the inflation rate. Don’t focus on beating the market.
•Keep expectations based on realistic objectives. (The market does not compound at 8%, 6% or 4%)
• Higher rates of return require an exponential increase in the underlying risk profile. This tends to never work out well.
•You can replace lost capital – but you can’t replace lost time. Time is a precious commodity that you cannot afford to waste.
• Portfolios are time-frame specific. If you have a 5-year retirement horizon but build a portfolio with a 20-year time horizon (taking on more risk), the results will likely be disastrous. $ISHARES S&P/TSX 60 INDEX ETF UNIT(XIU.CA)$ $VANGUARD FTSE CDN HIGH DIVID YIELD TRUST UNIT(VDY.CA)$ $VANGUARD INVESTMENTS CANADA INC S&P 500 INDEX ETF(VFV.CA)$