Whether you are new to the world of investing or a seasoned stock market player, it is easy to fall into bad habits.

Darius McDermott of advisory firm Chelsea Financial Services reveals the ten most common investor mistakes:

1. Trying to time the market: The industry adage is that it is time in the market that counts, not timing the market. This is because it is nearly impossible to time the market correctly and by missing just a few of the best days, you can significantly impact your pot of money trying to do this. It’s therefore usually better to stay invested.

2. Losing sight of your investment goal: When markets are volatile in particular, it is very easy to get distracted by market noise and forget that you are investing for the long-term. Remember your goal and stick to your plan.

3. Not investing early enough: The power of compounding is huge and investing just a small amount each month can result in a very healthy pot of money over time. Unfortunately, many people put off saving until later in life, by which time they need to save big, often unachievable, amounts of money each month to reach their goals

4. Not diversifying investments: some investors have been burnt by having all their eggs in one basket – or all their money in one asset class like equities. If this asset class does badly, your savings will do too. If you diversify your investments, they tend to be less volatile.

5. Over diversifying: At the other extreme, some investors hold so many different asset classes or funds that the impact of any individual part of their portfolio is diminished and they end up with a glorified (and expensive) global tracker.

6. Not derisking soon enough: As investors near their goals, or specifically the time when they will need their investments, they should be thinking about derisking their investments so that should markets fall dramatically for example, they don’t lose 30% of the money they need next month. Often this isn’t done with dire consequences.

7. Thinking cheap is best: There has been a lot of stories around fees recently, both for fund management and advice and the danger is that too much emphasis is being placed on the cheapest way to invest. This isn’t necessarily the best way to invest though. Don’t waste money, certainly, but value for money is more important.

8. Following a fashion or trend: It is very easy to get caught up in a trend but when something is becoming fashionable in the investment world, it is often the wrong time to be investing! Make sure you do your research and invest in something you believe in rather than trying to make a quick buck.

9. Not reviewing investments: While investing is for the long-term, you should regularly review your portfolio (at least once or twice a year) to make sure that you are still on track to reach your goal. If you just leave your investment and only look at it just before you retire, you could be in for a nasty surprise.

10. Becoming emotionally attached: We all get attached to things but it is important not to get emotionally attached to an investment as you may hold on to an underperforming investment too long and lose a lot of money.