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Amidst the financial chaos, the stock market’s taken our retirement savings on a wild and violent ride. We’re all in this together, and the best thing you can do right now is keep funding your retirement plan and be assured that your 401(k) is working for you, despite what you see on your monthly statement.

Here’s how your 401(k) does this: Each and every month, slowly and steadily, a small portion of your paycheck is invested in mutual funds that buy stocks -- most likely all over the world. This means your 401(k) is actually helping you to buy low and sell high, which is what all great investors strive to do! You’re actually picking up shares of great companies that are still making plenty of money, but their prices have been beaten down because of the overall market. You’ll wind up owning more shares at reasonable prices than if you invested in stocks only during the good times.

401(k)s are taking full advantage of something called dollar cost averaging. This is a time-proven investment strategy in good times and bad. Over time, as the market fluctuates, your consistent investment grows while your cost basis averages out.