There is always a market that has done better than your own overall stock investing returns. It is one of the pitfalls of investing to look back and tell yourself “if I just had only invested in that market”.

As a smart index investor with sufficient funds to invest, you do not bet on just one market. You pick a number of different markets to spread your risks. You could for example invest in different international markets (if that is for you, read here more about diversifying internationally).

There is always one market that has done better than all other markets. Maybe you picked that market as one of the markets that you invested in. Or may you have missed that market totally.

Market Hindsight

In both situations, the advantage of hindsight tells you that you would have made more money if you would just have invested in that market.

If you lose the perspective here, you may be inclined to start focusing your investments on just one market that you expect to do better than all others.

And you could be lucky. And that market does outperform all other markets. But most likely, you will not be lucky. Because, to be able to identify the market that will do better than all other markets, you must be smarter or better informed than all other market participants.

Maybe you have this crystal ball, but probably not. In that case, like for most other investors, it is better to spread your investments than to focus on a single market.

Just keep reminding yourself that to pick a market in hindsight is not the same as to pick the best performing stock market in advance.