Many people point to Warren Buffett as an example of how well the 'buy and hold' method of investing works over the long term. So while it is easy to hear those words and accept them as a reasonable investment strategy, its another thing all together to actually act on when your stock has dropped 20% during a single trading session.

Anyone has suffered through the woes of a bear market knows that it is quite difficult to stick to your initial investment strategy when all around you people are jumping ship and liquidating assets. This is an investment strategy that requires discipline along with nerves of steel. Fears of depression often have investors heading for the hills and using logic that is at best faulty and at worst financially devastating.

If you have done your due diligence on your investment before you bought, then you should be able to weather the storm over the long term. As a matter of fact, the drop may provide the perfect opportunity to add to your position. Its important to remember that the buy and hold strategy works best with large cap stocks.

In these situations, perfectly stable companies may begin selling for fractions of their actual value for the interim-this by no means indicates that these companies will not fully recover and prove to be a perfectly solid investment. Below you will find three fundamental truths that should help weather your short-term market losses and stand fast when others are running for higher ground.

Its More Than Just A Sheet Of Paper

What you hold in your portfolio is a part of a company. Unlike day traders who buy and sell over the short term, hoping to make money by playing the up and down movement of the share price, long term investors are looking to own a piece of a company; to share in the story of the company. What your shares represent is a piece of everything the company owns. From pens to buildings, you own a portion of it.

In order to be truly successful as in investor you must do two things. First, you must not let emotion rule reason. Business and emotions are never a good combination. This is no different when it comes to investments in the stock market. Second, you must be able to evaluate the business and the potential of that business completely separately from the price of the stock. Remember that even the best company in the world is a lousy investment if you pay too much for the privilege.

Focus On The Big Picture

Are you trading large and small caps with the big picture in mind? If you look at any chart over the long term, you can easily identify areas where a company has dipped, only to trade much higher a few months later. In most businesses, there are seasonal changes that affect the share price. If you are trading large and small caps with the big picture in mind, then you can easily identify this as an opportunity to add to your portfolio. When the company releases news, how will it impact the company? Plenty of companies have for example, sought financing by issuing shares. Typically, this involves providing the buyer with the shares at a discount to the current market price. Not surprisingly, the share price drops to that amount. This is usually where the traders bail (hitting their stop losses on the way down). However, if the company is a solid one, that is going to use the money for expansion, acquisition or debt repayment, the market will reward investors over the long haul. If you sold based on one days trading actions, you would be out of a position, just when the company is poised to move higher.

Whether your are trading large and small caps for the short term or long term, the following tips should help to improve your returns:

Consider buying after a major correction. Markets go up and markets go down. Over time, they always go in an upward direction. Often corrections will provide excellent buying opportunities because of the "herd mentality". This often creates an oversold situation, which is perfect for buying! Just ensure that you are buying a strong company.

Remember there is money to be made going long, just as there is money to be made going short. Just know the trend before you decide which way to go.

Never buy a stock just because it has a low price. A low price and a great stock makes for a good selection. A low price on it's own does not. There is normally a reason why a stock is at the price it is at. If you want to gamble, go to Las Vegas.

The biggest mistake stock market investor make is to make the current situation fit the one they bought the stock in. I've seen countless swing traders buy a stock based on the movements of the 15 minute charts, only to say well, the daily chart looks good. If the share price of your company is down, you need to reassess what is happening now. Based on the current due diligence, is this just a temporary move down, or is this part of a larger change in the trend of the share price.

There is plenty of money to be made investing in the stock market, however you will make more money if you invest without emotion, and assess the current situation to identify if the party is over, or if you have been presented with an amazing opportunity. Buy and hold does not mean buy now and look at your positions in 10 years. It means investing in solid companies, and assessing along the way. Sometimes, things change, and you have to be willing to accept the change. The successful investor can easily identify if the share price is down for a bad reason, or is down to present them with a perfect opportunity to add more shares.