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"What should I do if I am sitting on huge losses?"

First of all ask yourself - Do you need liquidity or cash to meet your current living expenses or to pay off creditors?

If your answer is yes, then it may make sense to sell some of your investments to meet these daytoday needs. If no, then identify the goal of your action. What exactly are you trying to achieve by selling? Is it to limit losses? Is it to rebalance your portfolio?

Given the current financial environment, you cannot just sit and hope that tomorrow will be a better day for investing in the stock market.

Be strategic and be decisive. Also consider how changing something may affect your chances of meeting your investment goal. For example, will liquidating your investment prevent you from reaching a future financial goal? After clarifying your objective, it is good to always remember key principles of realising your losses as well as deciding on the best response based on what type of investments you have.

Once you have made the decision to liquidate, remember:

 

Liquidate in stages

In either an up or down market, liquidating your investments at regular time intervals, rather than in one shot, allows you to average out your potential gains and losses.

Stay focused on your goals

The markets might swing, but your goals shouldn't! Keep in mind that regardless of how the market fluctuates, what is more important is to keep focused on your financial objectives.

The markets will always oscillate significantly from time to time; your focus on planning for your children's education, your future plan, or your retirement shouldn't! Consistent focus, holding power and not being distracted by temporary market movements, can make the all difference towards achieving your longterm objectives.