The stock market is down big time over the last few weeks. In fact, in September 2008 alone, the stock market had one of the worst months ever, dropping over 10%! The bad news just hasn’t stopped. Merrill Lynch gets bought out by Bank of America, AIG the largest insurer in the country gets taken over by the government, and several banks like Washington Mutual have failed.

What’s a small investor to do?

“My advice for small investors is to not sell in a panic. I would evaluate your position and actually buy into the market as bargains come up” said Bob Johnson, a Savannah Financial Planner based in Georgia.

“This is definitely the worst financial condition for the markets in my 20 year career. But if a small investor is well diversified, there is absolutely nothing you should do.”

That’s because when a small investor, or anyone for that matter, is fearful, they tend to make bad decisions. Instead, look at you entire financial situation and your long term goals, and remind yourself that historically, things like this are a blip on the radar.

Nobody has a crystal ball, and things may not get better anytime soon, however, pulling money out now historically has proven to hurt the small investor the most. That’s according to a study done of the past 10 major market drops. In fact, one of the best things you can do now is to put money into the areas of your portfolio that has seen the biggest drop. It may seem counter intuitive, but it works. For example, emerging markets are way down right now, over 40% off their highs. This would be a perfect time to rebalance and add more funds to emerging markets, and studies show this to be true to.

If you do not yet have a plan, and don’t feel comfortable or knowledgeable developing your own, then perhaps the best advice is to go and meet with a certified financial planner. The best way to find one is to ask a friend who is financially successful for a recommendation.

And relax – history is on your side, no matter how difficult it is, just stick it out. Things will return to normal, they always do.

When it comes to work boots, nothing comes close to the quality of Justin Work Boots. My brother works construction and he has had the same pair of Justin Boots for 8 years now. And he wears them every day, whether it’s 100 degrees or zero degrees out, these boots were made for working.

Being intrigued by the longevity of those boots, I did some research and found that the company actually started as a family owned business in Texas. Today, they still have the same pride in their work as when they started, but have a much larger operation allowing them to produce a lot more boots.

Justin Boots not only make great work boots but they also make a huge line of cowboy boots as well. The Justin cowboy boot line is probably what the company is most noted for. They produce a specific boot for horse riding and rodeos known as roper boots. Roper boots are essentially cowboy boots but strengthened in certain areas and missing most of the flair of regular cowboy boots.

They are usually plain, one color, with one specific purpose, to get scuffed up and get dirty. There’s nothing about a rodeo that’s clean and roper boots can handle any punishment a rodeo cowboy can dish out. I always wondered why the cowboys in the rodeos don’t just wear work boots. Well, rodeo cowboys have to have a sense of fashion too. You never see them wear just t-shirts either.

Of course, you don’t have to be a cowboy to own a pair of rustic cowboy boots, but if it’s the look you’re going for, you’re not alone.