The More It Drops, The More I Buy

Let’s get something straight right out of the gate: if the stock market were a haunted house, most people would wet themselves and run out screaming at the first flicker of red candles on their chart. Meanwhile, I'm the lunatic who walks in, sees the bloody ghost of Lehman Brothers floating through the hallway, and says, "Ooh, half off? Don’t mind if I do."

Yes, I’m talking about buying the dip — and not the lukewarm, meme-stonks-and-Twitter-gurus kind of buying the dip. I mean the full-blown, “your neighbor is selling his 401(k) for canned beans” kind of dip. The kind where CNBC is doing a special on "Dow Bloodbath: Will America Ever Recover?" and your Uber driver says, “I went all cash.”

That’s when I get excited. That’s when I load up. That’s when I whisper to the panicking herd:
The more it drops, the more I buy.

Welcome to the Contrarian Club

Being a contrarian investor isn’t glamorous. You don’t get high-fives when you say you’re buying bank stocks during a banking crisis. You get looks. You get questions like “Are you okay?” or “Do you need to talk to someone?” But history has a funny way of rewarding those who buy when there’s blood in the streets — even if some of it is their own.

Warren Buffett didn’t build his empire buying after the rally. He built it by stepping into the chaos with a fat wallet and a stronger stomach. When the market was in freefall in 2008, he wrote a love letter to America in The New York Times and went shopping. The guy was buying Goldman Sachs while the rest of the world was baking sourdough and Googling “bankruptcy laws.”

But... What If It Keeps Dropping?

Ah yes, the eternal fear. What if you buy and it goes lower?

Guess what? It might. That’s the point. That’s where the magic is.

See, most people think you’re supposed to wait until the pain stops before you start investing again. But markets are like relationships — if you only commit when everything’s perfect, you’ll die alone clutching a pile of cash that inflation is quietly eating alive.

The more it drops, the more you should want to buy. If you had a favorite pair of shoes and they were 30% off, you wouldn’t panic and throw them out. You’d buy a second pair. And maybe a third. But when stocks go on sale, people run around like someone just pulled the fire alarm at the orphanage.

Because Price ≠ Value

Let’s clarify a critical distinction: price is what you pay, value is what you get. When a quality company is selling at a lower price — not because its fundamentals have deteriorated, but because the market is having an emotional breakdown — that’s a gift.

Amazon didn’t become a trillion-dollar company without going through gut-wrenching drops. Apple was once left for dead. Netflix used to mail DVDs. These companies had moments when their stocks plummeted, and smart investors saw opportunity, not a death sentence.

If you believe in the value — the business, the model, the moat, the cash flows — then a lower price should make you salivate, not evacuate.

But Timing the Bottom Is Hard!

No one times the bottom. If someone tells you they do, check their forehead for a “SELL” button — because they’re probably a walking advertisement for bad decisions.

The goal isn’t to catch the bottom. The goal is to consistently buy good assets at better prices. It’s about building a position over time, lowering your cost basis, and laughing maniacally in the future when the market eventually reverts to its mean — which, historically, is up.

Trying to time the bottom is like trying to jump onto a moving treadmill while blindfolded. Sure, it’s possible. But you’re probably going to end up on your face with a pulled hamstring and no stocks.

Dollar-Cost Averaging: Boring, Effective, Sexy (To Me)

I know. Dollar-cost averaging isn’t sexy. It’s not crypto moonshots or YOLO Tesla calls. But you know what it is? It’s discipline. It’s sanity. It’s wealth-building in slow motion.

And when the market tanks? That’s when your boring little DCA plan becomes a secret weapon. Because now your money is buying more shares, at cheaper prices, while everyone else is hiding under their desks.

Recession? Sweet. More shares.
Bear market? Delightful. My dollar just stretched like a yoga instructor.
Volatility? Please. That’s my cardio.

The Herd Will Hate You (Perfect)

Let’s be real: you will not be popular at cocktail parties. Nobody wants to hear your bullish take when their portfolios are bleeding. They want validation for their despair, not a TED Talk on price-to-earnings ratios.

So you’ll get sneered at. You’ll be mocked. Someone will definitely quote Warren Buffett at you, ironically, just before they panic sell:

“It’s different this time.”

Sure it is. It’s always different. Until it’s not. Until the market recovers and rips higher, like it always has, and you’re sitting on gains while they’re sitting on regrets.

How This Plays Out (Every Time)

Let’s look at how it actually works:

The market crashes.
People panic.
News gets dramatic.
You buy, and you buy again, and again.
The market stays down longer than you'd like.
You question everything.
The news declares capitalism dead.
Then suddenly — quietly — things get better.
Stocks rise.
People crawl back in.
You’ve already been there, compounding the whole time.

And then they ask, “How did you know?”

You didn’t. You just had a plan. And a stomach. And maybe a little bit of spite.

Real-Life Example: March 2020

Remember March 2020? Global pandemic. Lockdowns. Toilet paper hoarding. The market dropped like a rock tied to another rock. Every headline screamed “Unprecedented.”

What did I do?
I bought.
And bought again.
And when it dropped further?
Guess what: The more it dropped, the more I bought.

You know what happened after that?

The S&P 500 roared back. Some stocks doubled, tripled, or more. And the people who waited for “clarity” or “certainty” bought back in when things felt better — at 30% higher prices.

Congratulations. You paid more for the same burger because the chef stopped yelling.

This Isn’t for Everyone

Let’s be clear: this approach isn’t for cowards. It’s not for people who check their brokerage app like it’s Tinder. It’s not for people who panic when a red number flashes.

This is for people who understand that volatility is the price of admission. That fear is a feature, not a bug. That you can’t expect to be a great investor if you’re not willing to be uncomfortable.

Great returns don’t come from comfort. They come from courage, conviction, and a little bit of crazy.

The Market Is a Voting Machine Short-Term, a Weighing Machine Long-Term

In the short term, markets are emotional wrecks. They overreact. They chase narratives. They get drunk on hype and hungover on headlines.

But over the long term, they weigh fundamentals. Earnings. Dividends. Cash flow. Value.

When the market drops, it's usually because the voting machine is panicking. That’s your cue. Because when the weighing machine kicks in, it’ll reward those who bought when the votes were fear-soaked.

Action Steps for the Brave

Want to live this out? Here’s your playbook:

Build a Watchlist: Know the companies or ETFs you want long-term exposure to. Quality, profitability, moats.
Know Your Value: Understand what makes a price attractive. Don’t just buy blindly. Use valuation metrics. Know your range.
Set Buy Triggers: When a stock hits a level you like — based on actual analysis, not vibes — buy.
Automate DCA: Remove emotion. Set recurring buys for your favorites. Add more during dips.
Turn Off the Noise: Stop watching the market like a telenovela. You’re not day trading. You’re building wealth.
Stay Liquid: Always keep dry powder. Cash is oxygen during fire sales.
Review But Don’t React: Track your progress, but don’t overtrade. Let compounding do its thing.

Final Thoughts: Be Greedy When They’re Screaming

Fear will always sell. It’ll always be louder than logic. But if you can see through the panic — if you can recognize that fear is often a signal, not a stop sign — you’ll be miles ahead.

Buy when there’s value. Buy when others are scared. Buy when they say “this time is different.”

And when they ask what your strategy is?

Smile and say:

“The more it drops, the more I buy.”