Most of us have multiple roles—as business owners, professionals, workers, consumers, citizens, students, parents and investors. So our views of the world can differ according to whatever hat we’re wearing at any one time.

This complexity of people and their …

In the popular TV program MasterChef, contestants face a series of cooking challenges. From low quality ingredients to inadequate preparation and poor implementation, so many things can, and do, go wrong. It’s a bit like investing.

In the world of …

The media occasionally locks in on a particular “hot” sector. In the late 1990s, it was technology. In the mid-2000s, it was mining. Writing headlines about fashionable sectors is one thing. Building investment strategies around them is another.

A reason …

Like it or not, we’re all involved in running the “family business.” We worry that our parents might outlive their retirement savings. We’re comforted by the thought that family members would probably bail us out if we got into money …

Financial professionals often follow two rules of thumb when providing clients with financial advice. First, they suggest clients save as much as possible in qualified retirement plan accounts, such as 401(k) plans and Individual Retirement Accounts (IRAs). Contributions to these …

Would you be interested if I told you about an investment product that promises never to lose money while at the same time allowing you to participate in stock market gains when they occur? The products are called indexed annuities, …

August 2010 unemployment reached 9.6%, according to the U.S. Department of Labor. A bad number – but not so bad as to cause a crisis.

Not only are thousands of Americans unemployed, but almost half of them have been unable …

Things are afoot in the land of the free economy. Big things.

For the first time in several years, the threat – or perceived threat – of inflation is beginning to loom, and there are whispers in the corridors of …

Thinking about converting to a Roth Individual Retirement Account (IRA)?

While many people will make that decision more from their heart than head, one important question to ask yourself is, how long can you keep your money in a Roth …

Tough decisions must be made.

The Pew Center recently reported that 10 states – Arizona, California, Florida, Illinois, Michigan, Nevada, New Jersey, Oregon, Rhode Island, and Wisconsin – are barreling toward economic disaster. Double-digit budget gaps, rising unemployment, and high …

Our last crash into recession generated a huge volume of news coverage, speculation, and analysis. You may wonder why the news of its apparent end isn’t now being shouted from the rooftops.

This is particularly curious given that the optimists …

When 401(k) plans were officially sanctioned by Congress in 1982[1], the S&P 500 index had been struggling to gain traction for more than a decade.[2] Back then, few could have imagined one of the longest bull markets in U.S. history …

Since its creation more than a decade ago, the Roth Individual Retirement Account (IRA) has been among the best tax breaks available. You get tax-free withdrawals of your earnings after your taxed dollars have been contributed, and once the five-year …

Are you “thinking” about retirement?

As early as 1968, the co-authors of the book, Social Security: Perspectives for Reform, observed:

“There is a widespread myopia with respect to retirement needs. Empirical evidence shows that most people fail to save enough …

The media is not your friend.

It’s quite common to come across people who think they know how to manage their investments. And, the fact is, some people do a very good job of it. But experience shows that competent …