Why individual stock investment is bad.

[Grieve]

I read this article last night, and was just shaking my head. Why do people do these kinds of things? When you buy into hype, you lose. Why on earth would Facebook stock be "in your retirement plans?"l

I have FB in my retirement account, as well as highly risky options. It all depends on your age and appetite risk. When you are young (not that I am...), you SHOULD have risky investments. Much better to do it when you are starting than when you get close to retirement. I've spent a lot of time advising friends, family and coworkers on financial stuff, and it blows my mind when I find a 25 year old putting 25% (sometimes even 50%) of their 401k funds in bonds. You need to be aggressive early, and gradually transition into bonds as you near retirement (at 42 I still have zero bonds).

And never pay a financial advisor - their advice sucks.