Quotes of the Day

How much to save for retirement? If I absolutely had to provide a one-size-fits-all flat percentage of pay, I would make it 12% with the caveat that you might have to change that percentage as you get closer to retirement. If I could express it differently, I would suggest saving 5% of pay in your 30s, 15% in your 40s and 25% in your 50s. This alternative represents a rough approximation of the Rule of 30. [2021] - Frederick Vettese

If your account has a bond index, a domestic stock index, and an international stock index, you'll have a good chance of success. A rule of thumb is that you should have a bond allocation that's roughly equivalent to your age. Some experts suggest that it should be your age minus 10, or if you want a riskier portfolio, your age minus 20. Common sense should be used here. A 50-year old government employee expecting a guaranteed pension when he retires can afford to invest less than 50 percent of his portfolio in bonds. [2017] - Andrew Hallam

When the gold market gets red-hot, and it will, every gold dealer and precious metals brokerage firm will pay spot (most current price) for your gold coins and sell at 10 percent over spot. [2009] - James DiGeorgia

Achieving a goal of just 1 percent per month would put you well ahead of most traders, since the majority of traders lose money. While a goal of 2 percent per month may not sound awe inspiring, if we can achieve it consistently, the annual gain will be just shy of 27 percent—and you’ll have outperformed most mutual funds and hedge funds. If you have successfully achieved your modest goal for three months in a row, raise the goal to the next plateau—from a 1 percent monthly goal to 2 percent, or from 2 percent to 3 percent, and so on. By the time you work your way up to consistent monthly returns of 3 percent and then 4 percent, you’ll be putting up respectable numbers, and you’ll have gained the benefit of months of experience. If you can achieve consistent monthly gains of 5 percent or 6 percent, you will have truly joined the elite. [2007] - Ed Ponsi

Our ability to obtain deep sleep declines with age, beginning as soon as our late twenties or early thirties, but worsening as we enter middle age. One analysis suggests that the bulk of the changes in adult sleep patterns occur between the ages of 19 and 60 and only minimally decline after that, if one remains in good health (a big if). More research points to the forties and sixties as the decades of life when deep sleep is especially important for the prevention of Alzheimer's disease. People who have slept less during those decades seem to be at higher risk of developing dementia later on. [2023] - Peter Attia