3 Reasons Why Investors Should Remain Optimistic
When will the bears be moved to the sidelines so that the bulls can get back in charge?  There are no guarantees, but here are three reasons why I'm betting that the worst may be over.

The Zig-Zag Approach: Invest in Any Market
No matter what is happening in the market, the keys to successful investing are simple: a portfolio of stocks with powerful fundamentals and extreme buying pressure and staying invested at all times. In order to accomplish this, you need to take as much of the daily stock market gyrations out of the equation and let the strength of your stocks speak for themselves. Zig-Zag can help you do exactly this.

How to Invest in an Increasingly Volatile Market
Are you concerned about how volatile the market is? A lot of folks are. So, how to you  invest these days and still sleep at night? Get several tips for doing just that here.

3-Step Guide to Building Wealth in Tough Times
The economy’s headed south, everyone agrees. But your stocks don’t have to go with it.  Find out how to protect your portfolio and LOVE the slowdown here.

Fight the Bear Market with Bear-Market ETFs
There are investments out there that go up in value even in bear markets—bear-market ETFs. These funds correspond with the inverse of the market indexes—so as the market goes down, they go up. Get details on three to add to your portfolio ASAP!

Digging Deeper Into Bull and Bear Markets
Discover why it's important to know the characteristics of the two types of market conditions.

The 5 Biggest Stock Market Myths
Stocks that go down must come up, right? Wrong. We bust this and four other common market misconceptions.

Make no mistake, we’re still in a grey area here, but here’s what I suggest investors do now to deal with the tricky transition from bear to bull market:

1. Get fully invested in stocks (up to your personal limit).

Last month, I advised my Profitable Investing readers to wait for a drop in the S&P 500 to 1,310 or less before accelerating their stock purchases.

That turned out to be a good tactic, because the market fell sharply in late February and early March, holding well below 1,310 for most of the stretch from March 6 to the middle of the month.

Now that we’ve had two power days, the risk of a runaway move to the downside has diminished markedly. Investors should act promptly and deliberately to wrap up your stock purchases over the next few weeks. Any daily decline of 1% or more in the S&P should spur you to do some buying.

Get the names of my three top picks by clicking here.

2. Invest in mutual funds and exchange-traded funds for the immediate future.

If I’m correct that a new bull market is about to emerge (with several years of staying power) then investors have found themselves standing at that rare juncture where picking the “right” stocks is less important than just being in the market.

As in early 2003, when the stock market was in a similar position, I recommended that my Profitable Investing subscribers invest most of their new money into index funds, which cast the widest possible net.

Large-cap growth stocks have outperformed large-cap value stocks since last June, and small caps of all stripes by an even wider margin. While that leadership will eventually change, it will probably continue for at least the first six to 12 months of the next bull market.

3. Maintain adequate reserves of cash and CDs (or short-term bonds).

Balance is essential in a dangerous world. I’m an eternal optimist, but I also believe in preserving capital. Therefore, always keep enough cash on hand to protect yourself from the reckless U-turns of Mr. Market! I’m currently recommending that my Profitable Investing subscribers open an account with this Internet-based bank. It has a generous 3.87% yield, including daily compounding. Deposits of $50,000 and up earn even more. And, unlike others, it allows you to write checks against your account. You can find its name in the April issue by clicking here.