No matter how well you know the theory, it’s useless if you can’t apply it to improving your investment decisions and becoming a more profitable trader.
One thing you should have picked up on by now is that you can’t have a bull market without a bear market, and vice versa — the two are complementary and natural, so there’s no need to be afraid of the lows.
However, the correct way to react depends on a few factors. Most importantly, how’s your risk tolerance? If you can’t stomach seeing your investments plummet in value for a while, trying to predict and profit from price movements probably isn’t for you.
You should also consider the time horizon you’re investing over — are you trying to make some quick gains in the short run, or are you more focused on maximizing your profits a few decades down the line?
As a swing trader, you can learn to identify stocks that are likely to increase in value early on in a bull market, and sell them just as they reach their peak. Yes, it’s easier said than done, but it can be incredibly profitable.
Alternatively, you might prefer to play it safe by buying into stocks that you think have good long-term potential while their prices are low during a bear market, hoping that you’ll see huge gains later down the line.
If you can “bear” (get it?) the lows of a bear market, they can actually offer a unique opportunity to buy into profitable opportunities while prices are low.