Even as the S&P 500 index posts the worst week since April this week, the index is still doing very well in 2024. The index is still up 16% this year and hit a new all-time high 38 times this year. To put things in perspective, the index recorded 0 all-time high in 2023 and only 1 all-time high in 2022. When the index is doing well, retail investors tend to sit on the sidelines and wonder if they should be investing in the market. Some retail investors worried that they made "bad investment decisions" and bought into the index at an all-time high. Declining or even negative returns following their investments become their biggest concerns. If you are thinking so, this article is a reminder that compound interests (being the eighth wonder of the world) will save you from your "bad investment decisions". Let's start off with the basics....