November 2025

I’m not the type of person to take unnecessary risks, at least not anymore. There was probably a time, like with many young people, that I didn’t always recognize, acknowledge or care about what the downside of taking a certain risk could mean. Now, I feel like when making choices my mind plays out several different scenarios and I often take the more cautious option.

I don’t even like watching scenes in movies or shows where the characters are choosing to take unnecessary risks, which to the viewer, will only lead to disaster and disappointment. In fact, often when that happens, I cringe, hide my eyes or walk away just so I don’t have to watch them screw everything up. I don’t like it. It makes me uncomfortable.

Maybe this stems from years of taking a lot of unnecessary risks or maybe it’s because I now recognize my own mortality. Whatever the source, it definitely carries over into my work life and the advice I provide you as well. With that being said, risk isn’t always bad or negative. Furthermore, risk has a place in your portfolio and investments because we all know that risk and reward go hand in hand. However, there are different types of risk with different types of investments, and these are all things that must be considered as I make recommendations, and we discuss what is most appropriate for you.

How much risk to take and what is right for you, depends a lot on your stage of life. When working with a young person whose investments are earmarked towards retirement, which is 10 years, 20 years or maybe even more down the road, taking on more stock risk is part of the plan. As the stock market fluctuates, that saver has many years to ride the waves. When working with retired people, or people on the verge of retirement, reducing that stock risk is paramount. The time frame has shortened and that isn’t necessarily the best course of action. Any day of the year, I would rather have to explain why your investments only made 7% instead of 17% rather than explain why you lost 20% rather than just 5%. It’s not worth it to take on the unnecessary stock risk at that stage of life. With that being said, we do continue to use the stock market and assume stock market risk so that years down the road, we can keep up with inflation risk. Think about it, in 1992, Cliff paid $13,000 for his first new car. This year, the average new car costs $55,000. We need your money to take some risk with stocks to grow.

Everyone is different and can tolerate the ups and downs at different levels. In addition, everyone’s situation is unique, which is why we talk with you about what types of investments you have and the amount of risk you are taking on. I don’t want you to cringe or hide your eyes because you feel uncomfortable. We want you to feel comfortable and confident that your investments are appropriate for you and fit the amount of risk you are willing and able to take on for this stage of life.

Any opinions are those of the author, are subject to change without notice and are not necessarily those of Raymond James. This material is being provided for information purposes only, is not a complete description. and does not constitute a recommendation. Future investment performance cannot be guaranteed; investment yields will fluctuate with market conditions. Investing involves risk and investors may incur a profit or a loss regardless of strategy selected, including asset allocation and diversification.