There’s quite a bit of chance involved in stock-market investing.
As financial experts preach time and again, there’s no way to predict returns with 100% certainty. No one — not even professional money managers — can time the market precisely. That means at least part of your performance as an investor is out of your hands.
But it’s easy for a novice investor to think they can replicate returns, especially once they’ve made money using their stock-picking strategy of choice, said Eric Roberge, a certified financial planner and founder of Beyond Your Hammock.