Even though I'm pushing 40, I still talk to my mom and dad every Monday night. We talk about the usual stuff - weather, sports, family developments, etc. This time, however, my mom brought up a new subject - investments, specifically, my parents' June quarterly statements from their mutual funds.

"We lost money," my mom said, as if this is never supposed to happen. "Can I switch out of my funds? I don't like losing money."

And I thought only children were spoiled.

I'm sure my parents' surprise about losing money in the second quarter was not an uncommon development throughout the country. Indeed, investors who have become accustomed to 25% or 50% gains probably took a double-take when they saw minuses instead of pluses in their latest quarterly statements.

Most people's knee-jerk reaction to losing money is the following -- sell the investment and get into something that's "going to go up."

Unfortunately, studies have shown that, on average, individual investors would be better off buying the investments they sell and selling the investments they buy.

Fund and brokerage statements are good things because they help you keep track of your investments, especially the cost basis of your investments. However, receiving your fund or brokerage statements should not be a catalyst to trade your investments.

Making investment decisions based on the results in your quarterly statements is like driving a car looking out the rearview mirror. That quarter is done. What matters is what will happen, not what did happen.

Remember: Your quarterly statements reflect only three months worth of activity. Anything can happen in a three-month period. However, the longer you expand your time horizon, the volatility of owning stocks diminishes. Don't get caught up in the losing proposition of chasing performance, whether its stocks or funds. Do your homework, buy your investment, and give your idea time to work.