Economy is a juggernaut

The stock market is driven by economy. Investors get happier when the economy looks good and get worried when the outlook for economy is not good. Often, investors overreact for the good/bad signs.

If you have invested money in stocks, you should carefully watch out for the indicators of the economy - like consumer spending, housing market, unemployment rate, jobs growth, exports/imports etc., You should also time your trades (buy/sell) accordingly. Do not ever make a buying or selling decision without even monitoring the economy indicators.