Just Breathe
By Jay Kenerly, ChFC®, AIF®
I’m no yogi. But my wife is.
Rosemary goes at least two or three times a week to a local studio and recently completed a 40-day yoga challenge. Forty days of sweat, stretching, strength. It was intense.
I watched her power through difficult poses, early mornings, and sore muscles—but the hardest part may not have been physical. The challenge was also mental. And emotional. And spiritual.
Throughout the course, her instructors repeated one phrase over and over again:
“Just breathe.”
When the poses are tough—just breathe. When you feel unbalanced—just breathe. When your mind wanders to a growing to-do list—just breathe. When it’s too much—just…. breathe.
If you’ve checked your retirement accounts in the last ten days, you probably felt a gut punch. The market has taken a sharp, drastic downturn. Volatility is everywhere, and there is a general sense of "what next?"
I’ve had several conversations recently with friends asking if they should pause contributions, shift their investments, or pull out entirely “until things settle down.”
Believe me—I get it. My accounts are just like yours. Watching balances drop in value never feels good. It can stir up fear, frustration, and doubt.
But here’s what I keep telling myself and others—and maybe it’s what you need to hear, too: Just breathe.
Breathe through the discomfort. Breathe through the temptation to act out of fear. Breathe through the noise and headlines and opinions.
The market is doing what markets do—it goes up, it goes down, and it never, ever moves in a straight line. But your plan? Your long-term goals? Your commitment to taking care of your future self?
Those haven’t changed.
You’ve set something up that runs on discipline, consistency, and patience. You’ve built guardrails. You’ve got a system that doesn’t emotionally react.
Retirement saving isn’t always easy. It’s about showing up, staying consistent, breathing through the tough parts, and staying on the mat.
It’s okay to feel unsettled. But don’t let that feeling throw you off your plan.
Just breathe.