Psychology is probably the most important factor in the market - and one that is least understood.

Demanding immediate success invariably leads to playing the fads or fashions currently performing well rather than investing on a solid basis. A course of investment, once charted, should be given time to work out. Patience is a crucial but rare investment commodity.

Analysts have always been overly optimistic.

History constantly reminds us that in an uncertain world there is no visibility of prospects. Future earnings cannot be predicted with accuracy.

I paraphrase Lord Rothschild: ‘The time to buy is when there's blood on the streets.'

We invest in undervalued companies that exhibit strong fundamentals, above-market dividend yields and historic earnings growth, which our analysis indicates will persist. Our strategy is to own strong, fundamentally sound companies and to avoid speculative stocks or potential bankruptcies.

Investors repeatedly jump ship on a good strategy just because it hasn't worked so well lately, and, almost invariably, abandon it at precisely the wrong time.