What role should bonds play for young investors?

Shark attacks, plane crashes, and lightning strikes… these are the dramatic and headline-grabbing events that are terrifying but incredibly rare. The odds you’ll ever experience those unfortunate events are tiny, so is it technically risky? Meanwhile, something as ordinary as driving to work should be considered more often since in the US, there are 6 million car accidents a year! When you start looking closely, risk and reward show up everywhere in our lives. And for investors especially, understanding the REAL risks we face, not the ones that dominate headlines, is essential to building a strategy that truly works. Our guest today has made it his mission to bring common sense back to finance. Ben Carlson is the Director of Institutional Asset Management at Ritholtz Wealth Management, where he focuses on managing portfolios for institutions and individuals. He is the creator of the widely read blog A Wealth of Common Sense and the author of several books on investing, including his new release, Risk and Reward. Today we discuss:

• Over-indexing on existential risk vs personal risk
• “When do you need your money?”
• Stress testing your investments
• International’s spot in a portfolio
• Timing the AI “bubble”
• Role of cash in investments, but also in personal finance
• Protecting your wealth from inflation
• Bonds for younger investors
• Adopting a long term investing mindset
• Treating “future you” like a bill
• And much more!

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