Know Your History
Doug White is no investing novice. An entrepreneur whose 7-year-old company sells and services Apple computers  small and mid-sized businesses, White understands that markets don’t always go up. But when they dive, it still hurts. “I’ve lost more money in my pension this year than I’ve put in to save on taxes,†says the 53-year-old Pennsylvanian about his Simplified Employee Pension Individual Retirement Account. Even so, White resisted the urge to dump stocks. He and wife, Celeste, 52, believe the only way to a comfortable retirement is to cast their lot with the market. “We don’t come from affluent families; we don’t have anything to rely on other than our own planning,†says White, calculating that he may need to postpone retirement by five years to make up lost ground. “We have no choice but to stay the course.â€
