Your Money & Your Life
Dolly Parton, Financial Planner
Dolly Parton is widely known as a performer, and more recently, as a successful businesswoman. Today I’d like to share a few of her observations and think about her as neither an entertainer nor entrepreneur but as another in the series of unexpected financial planners I’ve introduced over the years.
Let’s begin with one of her better-known lines:
“I’m not offended by all the dumb blonde jokes because I know I’m not dumb… and I also know that I’m not blonde.”
It’s a line that’s meant to bring a smile, but like many of her remarks, there’s more going on beneath the surface. Very early in her career, Ms. Parton grasped how she was likely to be perceived. She made a conscious decision not to fight that perception but to manage it. In doing so, she retained control of her own narrative.
Perceptions play a similar role in the investment world. Markets are often described in sweeping terms like under- or over-valued, risky, due for a takeoff or correction, but those descriptions are rarely based on complete information. Without a clear understanding of why you own what you own, acting on such perceptions can lead to decisions that seem reasonable at the time but might prove costly later. In my experience, the most successful investors are not the ones who ignore outside opinions, but those who recognize them for what they are: possibilities, not preordained outcomes.
Here’s one of Ms. Parton’s more practical observations:
“The way I see it, if you want the rainbow, you gotta put up with the rain.”
Here again, the phrasing is simple, but the idea is not. In investing, the “rain” often shows up as volatility, periods of market decline typically accompanied by negative headlines. The temptation to act becomes almost overwhelming. No one enjoys those episodes, but they are not anomalies. Experienced investors understand that such pullbacks are a normal part of a complete market cycle.
One of the greatest challenges in financial planning is helping clients prepare for those inevitable periods of decline, rather than reacting to them when they occur. When markets are rising, it’s easy to accept the idea of potential downturns. When they arrive, however, they rarely feel routine. The discipline required to stay invested during those stressful times is more about preparation than intelligence. A well-constructed plan, one that reflects a client’s spending needs and time horizon, can make it easier to view occasional declines as temporary rather than permanent.
A related idea appears in another of Ms. Parton’s quotes:
“If you don’t like the road you’re walking, start paving another one.”
At first glance, this sounds like an endorsement of decisive action. In the financial planning process, there are times when change is appropriate. Some examples might be a shift in career, the arrival of a child, or an approaching retirement. However, in an investment context, it’s important to distinguish between thoughtful and reactive changes. The former is based on new information or evolving circumstances. The latter is often driven by discomfort, such as during periods of market stress. In those moments, “paving a new road” can feel productive, but it may mean abandoning a well-considered strategy at precisely the wrong time.
In my experience, building flexibility into the plan is a more effective approach than making frequent shifts in direction. This allows for adjustments when they are truly needed, without requiring constant decision-making in response to changing conditions.
Taken together, Ms. Parton’s observations reflect a consistent theme. Whether she is talking about perception, perseverance, or personal agency, her comments reinforce the importance of understanding what can and cannot be controlled. Investors cannot control market returns, economic conditions, or daily news cycles. They can control their response to those things by managing the level of investment risk they assume, consuming news from a range of sources, and sticking to their long-term plan absent a compelling reason to do otherwise.
Of course, none of these actions guarantees a specific outcome, but taken together, they are likely to improve the odds of reaching one that’s satisfactory. As I’ve written before, successful investing rarely depends on doing everything right. More often, it comes down to trying to avoid potentially damaging mistakes.
At DCM, our role is to help clients think through these issues in advance and implement strategies that can be maintained through a variety of market environments. While we can’t eliminate the “rain,” we can work to ensure that it is anticipated and sometimes open the umbrella for our clients.
Warren Ward, CFP®
Senior Investment Advisor
To learn more about Warren or read his previous articles, visit his profile page here.
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This has been provided for informational purposes only and is not intended as legal or investment advice or a recommendation of any particular security or strategy. The investment strategy and themes discussed herein may be unsuitable for investors depending on their specific investment objectives and financial situation. Information obtained from third-party sources is believed to be reliable through its accuracy is not guaranteed. Opinions expressed in this commentary reflect subjective judgments of the author based on conditions at the time of publication and are subject to change without notice. Past performance is not indicative of future results.
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