When Mike Tyson was asked about an opponent's supposedly clever plan for protecting against his devastating left hook, he had an immediate response: Everybody has a plan until they get punched in the mouth. Tyson probably wasn't thinking much about investing when he made the observation above, but his words are just as applicable to retirement planning as they are to boxing. Continue reading →
Retirement planning has always been a complex and challenging process. There's no real way around that; it involves estimating how multiple impossible-to-predict variables will play out over a lengthy period of time. But rules of thumb and a generally cautious approach have historically been a pretty good combination. Continue reading →
With each passing year, the quality of investing-related content seems to increase (though there's a lot of garbage out there as well). During the past year I came across too many great pieces to count. Continue reading →
For the last several years, record low interest rates have forced investors seeking current income to get a bit creative. For the most part, this creativity has worked our just fine thanks to a long stretch of positive momentum for stocks and relatively low volatility. Continue reading →
In 1900, the life expectancy for an American woman was 48 years. By 2000, it had climbed to 80. And it continues to inch higher today, thanks to a number of technological and social factors. Continue reading →
In the realm of investing, rules of thumb are everywhere. Save 10 percent of your income. Put at least 20 percent down. Deduct your age from 100 to determine an appropriate stock allocation. Continue reading →
Based on the composition of the financial media, one may imagine that the bulk of American households are consumed with avoiding psychological investing traps and choosing between the various forms of smart beta. Continue reading →
The evolution of the U.S. economy over the last several decades is perhaps best illustrated by the energy sector, which was once the primary driver of the domestic stock market but is now almost an afterthought to most investors. Continue reading →