The Boring Investing Rule That Turned $5,000 Into $6 Million

hold stocks for an average of at least 5 years. Doesn't mean every stock for 5 years. Of course, there going to be some companies that are acquired, other businesses that disappoint you, you no longer believe in them, you're not interested in them, and you want to sell them after 18 months, great. But to have the mindset that we're not seeking rapid changes in stock prices in our favor and the opportunity to make money as quickly as possible. That is what's forming now in the market. There is much less thought about the beauty of owning a business like Netflix, a business like Tesla, companies that had their stocks fall more than 50% multiple times, but transformed the wealth of an individual investor that held those stocks for a long period of time. Let's take Nvidia. Nvidia's stock has fallen 50% four times. It fell 50% around the year 2000. It fell 50% 2008. It fell 50% 2019, and it fell 50% in 2022. Meanwhile, over that time period, it rose 1,300 times in value. It turned a $10,000 investment into $13 million over over the last 26 years, and you are not going to enjoy those types of returns. No one is. None of us will if we're focused on darting around and trying to optimize momentum trading in our portfolios. Now, I know our long-term members know this. That's why our long-term members are here because they they purchased Nvidia. Maybe they didn't get it right there when Rule Breakers first recommended Nvidia at 16 cents a share in 2005. That's obviously split adjusted. The stock was not at 16 cents, but split adjusted, Rule Breakers' cost basis in Nvidia is 16 cents since 2005. The stock, again, has risen 1,300 times in value since that. So, we do have members that put $5,000 in and have $6 million now. They write us letters, and they say, "Thank you for teaching the principle of holding these businesses for long periods of time because no one could have seen what Nvidia would become in 2005. And again, there were multiple times the stock fell 50%. So, there's a lot of complexity in that math when you think about what it takes because certain businesses go down 50% and they never come back. But, the fundamental key principles here are if you have a diversified portfolio, then it's easier for you to hold through volatility, stick with a company, stick with the businesses. Plenty of them will be disappointments. But, in the end, if you end up with an Apple, you end up with a Microsoft, you end up with an Nvidia, it can transform your financial life. So, don't go out fishing and come back and tell us how many minnows you caught. Let's go get some king salmon together and make sure we're focused for the very long term.