There is an old saying you have might have heard: “It is time in the market, not timing the market.” While this phrase is often repeated, its relevance remains strong as ever. 

With market volatility an ever-present feature of investing, whether influenced by geopolitical events or economic headlines, it is tempting to delay investing until the ‘right moment’. Yet, what many people do not realise is that these delays can quietly erode their long-term outcomes in ways that are not always immediately visible. 

This article explains why delaying making your investments may cost you more than you think, and how compounding, inflation, and market rebounds work against ‘timing the market’.  

The influence of Global events 

In early April 2025, markets experienced a sharp correction following a landmark US tariff announcement (‘Liberation Day’) that rattled global trade expectations. While the selloff was short-lived, with most major indices showing clear signs of recovery by month’s end, it served as a reminder of how quickly global events can shake markets. Fear and uncertainty can often lead investors to make reactive decisions, hoping to time their way around volatility. 

But this event, like many before it, could have been related to almost anything, whether a geopolitical development, a central bank comment, or a natural disaster. The reasons and severity may vary, but the pattern is familiar, with short-term volatility triggering reactive behaviour, even as long-term fundamentals remain intact. 

The result?  

Historically, many people would delay investing, waiting for the “right time.” However, for those who remained invested, the brief dip ultimately became a small footnote in an otherwise upward trend. 

The real cost of waiting 

It is understandable why you may want to delay investing. Markets feel uncertain, headlines are unsettling, and it may seem safer to hold off until conditions feel more stable. But waiting, even for what feels like a justified reason, can come at a cost.

Let us consider two hypothetical investors:

Investor A invests 100’000 on 1 January 2025.

Investor B waits until 1 January 2026 to invest the same amount.

Assuming a 7% average annual return, Investor A ends up with 761’226 after 30 years. Investor B, who delayed by just one year, finishes with 711’426, a difference of nearly 50’000 due to purely waiting one year.

This gap exists not only because Investor B missed a year of growth, but because Investor A’s money had more time to compound, generating returns on top of returns year after year.

Even if the time you enter the market initially appears volatile, or it seems like a better opportunity is just around the corner, history has consistently shown that markets recover and those who stay invested through the noise tend to be rewarded.

Short-term movements often smooth out over the long-term and the cost of waiting tends to outweigh the perceived benefit of trying to time things just right.

Inflation never waits 

There is another factor quietly working against those who wait to invest and that is inflation. 

While your money may appear safe in a bank account or savings vehicle, it may be losing value in real terms. When the interest earned is lower than the rate of inflation, your purchasing power declines year after year.  

For example, a cautious saver earning 2% interest while inflation runs at 3% is effectively losing 1% of their purchasing power annually. That erosion may not be immediately obvious, as the monetary balance of the account does not reduce, but your money will continue to buy less and less over time, diminishing its real world value.

This silent loss can be just as damaging as market volatility, especially when left unaddressed over many years. While waiting may feel like a safer option, doing so in a rising-cost environment steadily diminishes your wealth.

Market timing: A game few win 

Research consistently shows that even professional investors cannot time the market with accuracy. More often than not, you miss out on the best days by being out of the market during times of volatility. 

One of the greatest examples of this is with the S&P 500. If you had invested in the S&P 500 over the past 20 years but missed just the 10 best trading days, your return would have been cut by more than 50%. 

It just so happens that these ‘best days’ often followed closely after market selloffs which is precisely when many investors choose to exit or delay entry.

If you do not wish to invest everything at once, you can use a staggered approach, such as dollar-cost averaging, to help manage risk and smooth your overall returns. This can be useful to manage risk through changing market conditions.

What this means for you 

Timing the market is rarely effective and often costly. The most consistent outcomes come from staying invested, not from trying to predict market moves.

The cost of waiting can be easy to overlook, but between lost compounding, inflation, and missed recoveries, the long-term impact can be significant.

At Patterson Mills, we help you cut through the noise with long-term investment strategies that are built to weather market ups and downs. Rather than trying to time the market, we focus on creating a clear, structured plan tailored to your goals.

If you are not sure where to begin, get in touch with us today to learn more about how we can help.

E-mail to contactus@pattersonmills.ch or call +41 (0) 21 801 36 84 and we shall be pleased to assist you.