A few smart money managers seem to agree that, in investing, the defense is at least as important as offense - if not more so. I believe most investors make the mistake of trying to beat the average returns of the market and forget to goal-set and manage risks. I offer two strategies that should help increase the predictability of a growth portfolio's performance in the longer term. Defense is 10 times more important than offense. You have to be very focused on protecting the downside at all times.