What Can Go Wrong? Troubleshooting Investments

Abstract

Often we professors are so preoccupied with the pressures of teaching, researching, and publishing that we neglect our financial health. But we must discipline ourselves to plan for our financial future, for the simple reason that no one else will. Whether we house our money in TIAA–CREF or elsewhere, it is important to monitor at least periodically what is going on with your money. Remember, institutions of higher learning will not intervene on our behalf and of course, they pay no pension. Above all else, academics are skilled researchers and learners. It behooves us to harness those talents to protect ourselves from the whims of Wall Street and the financial markets. Economic conditions can deteriorate quickly or go awry. But the more we understand the arcane world of finance and investment, the better off we will be and the more secure we can make our future. In this chapter, we reprise most of the risks we covered in Chap. 2. But our focus is on avoiding pitfalls and distractions as we move toward our goals of preserving capital and increasing income in retirement.