As we have discussed many times, the right perspective is also the most profitable perspective. Here’s what that means.

Right now, it means you’re still after profits, but you want to take a moment to don the psychological armor needed to protect your money against the emotional inputs that will destroy other investors as conditions deteriorate in the face of a trade war, increasingly tense international relations, and disjointed politics on both sides of the aisle.

This makes sense when you think about.

When the markets are running higher, our emphasis is on loss preventionbecause we want to make money with every stock we own, every day we own it. When they’re running lower or losing gas, as is the case now, your primary focus becomes harvesting profits – a subtle distinction lost on most investors.

To be clear, I am not suggesting you time the markets – doing so never works out the way people think, despite their best intentions.

A rules-based approach, like the one I advocate, is always more effective, which is why it’s at the heart of every investing service I offer and a crucial part of the Total Wealth investing process.

I want you to start taking profits as fast as the markets want to hand them to you by doing three things. Chances are good that you will have a bunch – of profits, that is – if you’ve been following along for any length of time:

• Use Total Wealth tactics like trailing stops and profit targets to calmly and systematically harvest profits like clockwork without the emotional interference that cripples most investors who sell in a panic when the you know what hits the fan. This guarantees that you are constantly raising cash you can put to work later, even as other unsuspecting investors burn theirs. Again, this is how legends like Warren Buffett and Jim Rogers approach markets and how Sir John Templeton, one of the greatest market masters in history, did.
• Buy a short-term 1:1 inverse fund like the Rydex Inverse S&P 500 Strategy – Investor Class (RYURX) or an ETF like the ProShares Short S&P500 (NYSE Arca: SH). Both will rise as the S&P 500 falls, which means you can profit from the sting that will devastate other investors. Buying put options is also a great way to go if you’re options-savvy, but what I’m talking about today is protecting your core investments, not speculating.
• Put new money to work in ONLY those holdings like the Triple Compounderswe’ve talked about recently, or the world’s best Global Growth and Income plays like NextEra Energy Inc. (NYSE: NEE), Baidu Inc. (Nasdaq: BIDU), and Visa Inc. (NYSE: V), which still have solid business cases and even more solid profits ahead.

In closing, I know a column like this one can be scary.

Believe me, I certainly think twice every time I have to write one, which thankfully isn’t very often.

But, don’t let that stop you from investing.

Growth may slow but it will not stop.

The things we talk about all the time – Unstoppable Trends, “must-have” companies, and the need for consistent, unemotional risk management – will help you weather the storm I see brewing on the horizon and come out stronger on the other side.

And I’ll be with you every step of the way.

*This has been a guest post by Money Morning*

 Related: How Do Hedge Funds Cope With Volatility?