One of the things that has got me thinking lately is all of the complaining about investments not returning what investors put in. Many investors (especially those of the Bear Stearns variety) seem to think that an investment is always going to return what you put in to it.

This just isn’t true.

Whether you are involved in stocks, bonds, forex, commodities, futures, real estate or even art investing, whenever you invest, you are taking a chance. You are taking a chance that your investment will lose value, rather than gain it.

Our years of growth (much of it “stimulated”) have put us in a mindset that we should always get what we put in. Life and investing just don’t work that way all the time.

I’m not saying that you should avoid investing. A measured, carefully thought out investment plan can be a good way to grow your assets and prepare for the future (I love me my Roth IRA). But you need to evaluate your decisions carefully, and realize that you could lose money on some investments. But investing is still a good idea, especially if you do so with the long-term in mind.