Don't get him wrong, CNBC's Jim Cramer said he likes to get excited about companies he thinks have potential. He also said most investors can't afford to fall in love with stocks, and he stressed that it's important to be flexible. Let go of investments if the tide changes, he advised.
"When you buy shares in a publicly traded company, you're not joining that stock in holy matrimony," Cramer said. "You don't swear to stick with it in sickness and in health, for richer or poorer. You don't need to go to a judge to get a divorce. It's just a piece of paper."
Cramer urged investors to follow closely what they own and do their homework. Investors should be able to explain their stock portfolio to another person, he said.
Cramer added that flexibility is necessary with the changeable nature of the market. New competitors emerge, previously well-run companies start to perform badly and customers cancel orders. The unforeseen will occur that can hurt businesses or change the economy, he said.
According to Cramer, investors must be willing to acknowledge when they are wrong, or when a company's story changes and their thesis for why they own shares no longer holds weight.
"Before you buy a stock, please do some homework and come up with a thesis, a reason why you think that stock is headed higher," Cramer said. "If your thesis doesn't play out the way you expected it to, sell the darned stock as we do for the club. Don't keep bashing your head against the wall — just recognize that things don't always go your way and then move on."
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