Disclaimer: As I've said before, putting arbitrary date constraints on your investment performance is foolish. All that matters is that you're happy with your return curve (hopefully it's better than inflation) and don't have big divots of draw down.
Because what if you need your money tomorrow and you're smack in the middle of a 20% correction?
Vanguard won't go smaller than monthly on a performance graph but this is my lady friends IRA that I don't fuck around with. Just go by the book. This is a 32.4% gain over this time with a gentlemen's 5% draw down back when the world was down 20%. There were several 5% and at least one 10% corrections during these time frames as well. There was no outside cash added to this account (which vanguard so conveniently just piles in as 'gain'). I think total SPY hodl was 40%.
I also admit that I got cocky and broke my rules in April 25 which cost me 2-3% that was unnecessary. I think I actually called the 'seller trap' at this time in this thread before it really printed and acted on it which was a mistake. But hey, it's still not 20% down.
100% SPY
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Sure you could constrain the time and say that the 5% draw down was only in the time frame of a 15% gain YoY. But then do I at least get credit for the 18% gain with less than 1% draw down the year before?
To attempt to frame the grand point that I'm trying to make:
People (and financial salesmen advisors) like to celebrate things like the SP500 (or whatever shit they're selling) made 17% in 2025 (or insert whatever fuck percent/date range), but they gloss over that it also had a draw down of 20% in 2025 (and 30% in the early 2020's, and 50% in the 2008's) and you're just expected to ride out losing chunks of your money on any given day like it's business as usual?
"But my money is diversified and in safe funds. I'm happy if I make 6% a year!" That's great, but If your draw down is over 6% during that time frame your investment/diversification/mutual fund/stocks to bonds ratios/etc is shit. (Whether it's you or your money manager/advisor is making the calls). Accepting 100% of risk for 100% of reward is losing in the long run. (and then you got inflation)
Hedge funds and traders get judged with the Calmar ratio. Look that up and see where your portfolio falls. You can also do it for your favorite mutual fund you to which you subscribe... Yikes.
I think one of my first comments in here was something like "It's not what you make, it's what you don't lose". That's winning the game.
If you sense any hostility just know it's all directed at financial 'experts' who peddle this shit. And yes, I'm trying to become a licensed finance person for the same reason I became a real estate broker and sell shit for 0.5% commissions to piss off the blonde women walking around in Spanx peddling that racket.
Thanks for coming to my Ted Talk.
