Q&A: Tired of hearing 'buy and hold'

Q: My stockbroker and accountant continue to tell me to "ride out this market crash" because I am a long-term investor. That may have been true 20 years ago when I was in my thirties, but as I get closer to retirement I become fearful of losing what I have accumulated-and I have lost more than 40 percent in the last 18 months. Does the same old "buy-and-hold" strategy still have a pulse for those of us in our fifties, sixties, and older?

But what about the lost opportunity during those years? What if you simply made 3 percent on a one-year certificate of deposit? That would be $30,000 per year plus compound interest, or an additional $248,321. So even if you did ride out the market, your portfolio would still be behind almost 25 percent. We must find ways to generate significantly higher returns to gain back our losses and continue to experience growth. The opportunities exist to accomplish this using creative alternative income and growth investment strategies, but not via the same old "buy-and-hold," song-and-dance financial product sales people historically advocate.

Dan Deighan, CLU, CFC (left), is founder and principal of Deighan Financial Advisers in Melbourne, Florida. He has counseled clients since the firm's inception in 1974. Learn more by visiting http://www.deighanfa.com.