Just came across this fascinating historical theory about market cycles that actually makes you think about periods when to make money.

Back in 1875, a guy named Samuel Benner was obsessed with predicting economic patterns. He basically mapped out this repeating cycle of Boom → Recession → Panic, and what's wild is that his framework suggests specific windows for making moves in the market.

So here's how it breaks down. You've got panic years hitting roughly every 18-20 years (1927, 1945, 1965, 1981, 1999, 2019, 2035, 2053...). During these periods, financial crises and market collapses tend to show up. The advice? Stay cautious and don't panic-sell. These are the times when everyone else is losing their minds.

Then there are the boom years where prices are surging and markets are recovering strong. This is when you want to be selling and taking profits. Think 1928, 1943, 1960, 1973, 1989, 2000, 2007, 2016, 2020, and notably 2026 according to the pattern. These are the golden windows for liquidating assets at peak valuations.

The really interesting part? The recession and decline years (1924, 1931, 1942, 1951, 1958, 1969, 1978, 1985, 1996, 2005, 2012, 2023, 2032...). Prices are bottomed out, economies are sluggish. This is when you're supposed to be accumulating, buying stocks and commodities cheap, then holding until the boom cycles return.

The whole strategy is pretty simple if you think about periods when to make money: buy low during recessions, hold through the panic years, sell high during booms. Rinse and repeat.

Now, real talk – this isn't gospel. It's a historical pattern based on cyclical observations, not a guaranteed playbook. Markets get thrown off by politics, wars, tech disruptions, all sorts of unpredictable factors. But as a framework for understanding long-term market rhythms and identifying periods when to make money? It's definitely worth keeping in your mental toolkit. The cycles might not be perfect, but they're worth watching.