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Introduction

Welcome to one of the most turbulent decades in market history—and we’re not even halfway through. Since 2020, the market has recorded 440 trading days with daily swings of 1% or more, according to wealth manager Ben Carlson. For perspective, a typical decade sees just 507 such volatile days in total.

In other words, the 2020s have crammed nearly a full decade’s worth of market whiplash into less than five years. This relentless churn isn’t a fluke—it’s the new rhythm of investing.

But here’s the paradox: Volatility isn’t just noise—it’s where opportunity hides. History reveals that the most dramatic market swings often precede the strongest long-term gains. In fact, nearly two-thirds of the S&P 500’s best days happen during bear markets or immediately after sharp corrections.

Feeling unsettled is natural. But those who lean into volatility—rather than retreat from it—position themselves for outsized rewards

When Market Swings Mislead

When markets turn volatile, the common advice is simple: tune out the noise.

But let’s be honest—that’s easier said than done.

The challenge lies not in the market, but in our own wiring. As Jason Zweig points out in his book Your Money and Your Brain, humans are hardwired to detect patterns—even when none exist. It’s a survival instinct, but in investing, it can be dangerous.

Here’s the catch: this mechanism isn’t something you can just “switch off.” By tracking every tick of daily stock price movements, you may end up drawing the wrong conclusions—and worse, teaching yourself the wrong lessons. Over time, these false patterns can harden into costly misconceptions.

Take January’s sudden rise of China’s DeepSeek AI model. Headlines exploded, and almost instantly, AI-related stocks were hammered. Nvidia (NASDAQ: NVDA), the poster child of the AI boom, plunged 17% in a single day—wiping out over US$250 billion in market value.

At first glance, the lesson seemed obvious: react quickly or risk losing big. The implication was clear—only those who move at lightning speed can protect themselves.

But that’s not how markets really work. Within weeks, Nvidia’s stock staged a powerful comeback, erasing losses and hitting fresh highs. Investors who sold in panic locked in losses, while those who stayed patient were rewarded.

This episode is a classic example of volatility’s trap: it convinces us that speed equals safety, when in fact, discipline and perspective often deliver better results.

History backs this up. According to J.P. Morgan Asset Management, missing just the 10 best trading days over the past 20 years would have cut your overall returns by more than 50%. And here’s the kicker: most of those best days occurred within two weeks of the worst days. In other words, the moments that tempt you to sell are often the very moments you should be holding on.

The takeaway : Volatility is noise, not a signal. The investors who win aren’t the fastest to react—they’re the ones who resist the urge to overreact. By staying focused on fundamentals and the long-term story, you avoid turning short-term discomfort into permanent damage.

The Critical Speed Trap to Avoid

In the hours and days after DeepSeek burst into the mainstream, headlines zeroed in on one jaw-dropping detail: the Chinese AI model was reportedly developed for under US$6 million.

Why did this figure matter?

Because it stood in stark contrast to the billions of dollars that U.S. tech giants were spending on training models and building data centres—expenditures in which Nvidia claimed the biggest slice. Overnight, the market narrative shifted: if AI could be built “cheap,” then Nvidia’s dominance, and the spending spree underpinning it, might collapse.

The result? Nvidia’s stock tumbled, shedding nearly US$250 billion in market value in a single day.

But 6 months later, the panic looks not only premature—but misplaced.

First, the celebrated US$6 million price tag for DeepSeek excluded years of research, costly experimentation, and the infrastructure required to train such a model. In short, the “low-cost AI” narrative was flawed from the start.

Second, and more importantly, U.S. tech behemoths—Alphabet, Amazon , Meta Platforms, and Microsoft—haven’t slowed their spending. In fact, they’ve accelerated it, pouring tens of billions of dollars into next-generation data centres. And much of that capital continues to flow straight into Nvidia’s pocket.

The results speak for themselves: in the past two quarters alone, Nvidia has reported year-on-year revenue growth of 78% and 69%, powered by surging demand for its GPUs. From its January low, the stock has climbed 39% (as of 12 July 2025).

Here’s the real lesson: investors who rushed for the exits to “save a few dollars” ended up leaving far more money on the table. Simply holding on—just two quarters—would have captured Nvidia’s renewed momentum.

In markets, speed often feels like the answer. But more often than not, patience pays better dividends.

Time Will Reveal the Triumph

Not every headline deserves your attention—even when everyone’s talking about it.

As investors, our attention is one of the most valuable assets we control. Waste it on noise, and you risk missing the signal.

The recent frenzy in artificial intelligence offers a textbook example.

When OpenAI’s ChatGPT exploded in late 2022, pundits rushed to predict extremes: some claimed Google Search was finished, while others declared that Microsoft had already won the next decade. Then came another twist—OpenAI struck a deal with Google Cloud, showing that disruption doesn’t always play out in straight lines.

The lesson - Hype amplifies noise, but real signals emerge only with time.

This principle goes well beyond AI. Investors saw the same cycle during the dot-com boom of 2000, the crypto craze of 2017, and even the EV surge in 2021. The initial story always oversimplifies the outcome. Winners adapt, incumbents respond, and new opportunities appear where no one was looking.

So how do you separate signal from noise? A few timeless rules:

• Look at the numbers, not the narrative. Revenue growth, margins, and adoption rates tell you more than headlines ever will.

• Be patient. Disruptions take years, sometimes decades, to unfold.

• Stay open-minded. Markets often create multiple winners, not just one.

In the end, restraint is an underrated superpower. If you can resist the urge to react to every headline and instead let time be the judge, you’ll often find yourself on the right side of compounding.

Because in investing, it’s not the loudest story that pays—it’s the most durable one.

Grab Your Opportunity: Time for a True Winner

The fear of missing out (FOMO) often tricks investors into rushing decisions. The logic goes: if you don’t act now, you’ll miss the next big thing forever. But history shows otherwise.

Take Apple-Even if you completely missed the iPhone launch in 2007 and only bought shares a decade later, you’d still be sitting on gains of nearly 470% today. Sure, not as spectacular as the early birds—but are you really going to complain about multiplying your money almost fivefold?

The truth is this: markets will always swing, headlines will always scream, and hype will always tempt you to act fast. But wealth is built not by speed, but by patience, clarity, and conviction.

So, when faced with the noise, remember:

• It’s not about chasing every headline—it’s about spotting which developments truly move the needle.

• It’s not about how quickly you react—it’s about whether those changes endure.

• It’s not about having opinions on every trend—it’s about validating the winners at the business level, over time.

In short, don’t let volatility dictate your emotions. Focus on the durable truths of great businesses, and you’ll find there’s always time to add a winner to your portfolio.

Action point for you: Take a moment this week to review your watchlist. Ask yourself—are there high-quality businesses you’d love to own, but have been hesitating on because of market noise? If so, it might be time to start building your position, one step at a time.

Happy Investing!!