Time horizon is something you don’t often hear investors talk about. The truth is everyone has a different definition of what constitutes short-term and long-term. For traders who react to minute-by-minute price movements, a week may seem long. But for an investor who is parking his money in stable, blue-chip stocks, months or even years is a reasonable time horizon. So, let’s drill down into an important investment tenet that will stand the test of time – investing for the long term. We offer several reasons why you should do so rather than focus on the short-term volatility of the stock market.

Ignore the emotional roller-coaster

Short-term price movements are affected by all manner of news flow and events. Anything from macroeconomic announcements, corporate and business updates, or industry news may have an impact on a company’s share price. Oftentimes, sentiment also plays a key role in determining how much investors are willing to pay for a stock....