What should we do in a falling market?

IF MAKING money was easy, we would all be rich. That is how the popular refrain goes. But making money can be easy, provided we have the patience and the willpower to let our investments grow and mature over time.

Patience is key. That’s because there are no “get rich quick” schemes in financial markets (or at least, there aren’t any that we know of that are entirely legal). But in straitened times like these, there could be many people out there who will try to promise us a route to instant wealth.

To put it bluntly, the next few years could be tough beyond belief. Warren Buffett said as much at the annual shareholder meeting of Berkshire Hathaway. He warned that many of his conglomerate’s businesses could report lower earnings this year.