I can’t and won’t time the markets, and most professionals who try will fail if they make those bets repeatedly over long periods of time. My long-term bet remains on America and global stocks for now, with a healthy portion in international and emerging markets.

A Republican president with the House of Representatives and the Senate behind him can make a lot of change very quickly, and the stock market may fall a fair bit and be volatile for some time. Still, whatever Mr. Trump actually does will happen slowly, over many months. Given his history with the truth, he may not have meant everything that he promised, nor will he get his way on everything that he tries. But I expect to be happy that I stuck with stocks when I try to retire a couple of decades from now.

Retirees have a particular challenge here. Recent ones who are healthy, however, probably ought to plan on another 20 to 30 years of life, especially if there are two people in the household. That time horizon suggests the need for at least some stocks. Older retirees need to consider just how much their budgets could suffer if, say, a trade war sends stocks down 10 or 20 percent in a year or two. Perhaps it makes sense to park a couple of years’ worth of basic expense money in cash just to be safe.

4. If you simply cannot take the gyrations in the stock market anymore, you can make other choices.

You can buy bonds of various sorts, including municipal bonds that benefit citizens in cities and states that match your political leanings if you want to bet on only part of America.

But history suggests that you will earn less in bonds than you would if you had invested in stocks. If that’s the result, then you’ll need to save even more money, work longer or live on less in retirement (or some combination of the three). That may be palatable if you’ve reached the limit of the anxiety you can tolerate.

Or you can invest in a business of your own, which is a big, concentrated bet and a risky one, too. Owning rental real estate is another possibility, since whoever does get to live here will need a place to reside.

5. There are many things in life that matter more than the stock market.

Family. The freedom to form a family, or not, in all of the ways that are legal now and bring financial privileges with them. Health and access to medical care that will not bankrupt you.