Jason
Thank you for writing a small piece on behavioral finance. This subject does not get the attention it deserves from the mainstream media or investment professionals. It seems to be the "step child" of personal finance. In my opinion, many of our financial decisions are likely rooted in the subconscious (anxieties, fears, greed, etc..) and our consciousness rationalizes why we buy and sell assets/products/services. We hate cognitive dissonance. We have a tendency to tell ourselves stories why we are making the decisions we make but rarely evaluate the truth of our stories. If the human animal can be defined by one term it might be; "that animal that requires an explanation."

My question to you is this; what techniques or strategies do you suggest to use to counter balance unproductive and potentially damaging decisions caused by our emotional imbalance due to excess volatility? That feeling in the stomach when you see your stock go down 8% overnight with no reported news. One technique such as "only look at your open positions once a year" won't cut it for people like me that actually enjoy daily market observation. I am a long term investor and do not trade stocks. I live off dividends but still, on an emotional level, watching my open position sink 20% in a month remains painful. Any advice on how to change perspective or frame the event in such a way as to make it less painful? Thanks.
Jake