In the short - term, the market's tide will raise and lower all boats, but value investing works in the long - run, and unless you're in a late 1990's type mania, I think it probably is best to completely ignore the overall market and just focus on looking for undervalued stocks of individual companies that you think will be doing more business in five years than they are now. (basehitinvesting.com)
Given enough time, stocks of individual companies often make substantial price progress over time, and sometimes with no major pullbacks in price. (invest-faq.com)
You can buy stocks of individual companies if you have an account set up at a stock brokerage such as Vanguard or E-trade. (abcsofinvesting.net)