There are times when markets are up and your account is profiting, and there are times when panic ensues and stocks drop.

The key to successful trading is knowing how to handle the swings.

Which is why in today’s guest article, Oxford Club’s Chief Income Strategist Marc Lichtenfeld is showing readers how to not only survive market downturns – but profit from them.

Plus, Marc is also hosting a “Special Situation” event next Wednesday, Aug. 6 where he’ll be revealing a new strategy that has a 100% win rate so far.

I know that sounds too good to be true – but Marc has the stats to back it up.

Click here to sign up for Marc’s “Special Situation” event for free.

– Ryan Fitzwater, Publisher

“Think back to 2008 and 2009, I bet you wish you put a ton of cash into the market.”

Marc Lichtenfeld, Chief Income Strategist, The Oxford Club

Dear Reader,

A trait that most people find impressive is the ability to remain calm under pressure.

Think about who we look up to…

Politicians who lead during a disaster. Police officers, firefighters, and paramedics who can tune out the chaos around them to accomplish what needs to be done. Athletes, like a quarterback who stands in the pocket despite a massive pass rush and delivers a perfect spiral for a touchdown. And let’s not forget the parents who, when faced with their child’s health emergency, are able to reassure the child and keep him or her calm, despite their own worst fears.

It’s not just the ability to give a speech, spray water on a fire, throw a football, or speak soothingly to a child that makes these people exceptional. It’s the fact that they do it when fear and outside forces would make the task impossibly difficult for most people.

For some reason, investing is different. I’ve seen people act like rocks in the face of serious family crises yet panic during a stock market sell-off.

The reality is that bear markets – and outright panics like we had in 2008 and 2020 – happen every so often. They’re part of the natural cycle of markets.

But investors who can hang in there during a market collapse stand to make a lot of money by following these three steps.

1. Position your money properly.

If any funds that you need in the next three years are invested in the market, take them out. You can’t afford to lose that money if you need it to pay the mortgage, healthcare premiums, or college tuition.

Now, your long-term money isn’t affected by a market meltdown. Who knows where the market will be five or 10 years from now? Think about if you were invested in 2008. In five years, you were made whole.

But if you need the $10,000 you invested in the market to pay next year’s mortgage and it’s now worth only $5,000, that’s a problem.

2. Use stops.

The Oxford Club is an advocate of using trailing stops. That way, you protect your profits and don’t let small losses become devastating losses.

During market collapses, it’s very easy to justify removing your stops, because nothing fundamentally has changed in the company and no one wants to get stopped out because of other people’s panic. But you put your stops in for a reason, and you did it without emotion. Removing stops during a market sell-off is usually an emotionally driven response and is almost always a bad idea. Stick to your stops.