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Here, author Jonathan Clements identifies five key tradeoffs that shape your investment and insurance choices:

📌 Dying Young vs. Living Long: Your decisions about claiming Social Security, purchasing annuities, or taking pension payouts often stem from worries about dying early versus outliving our money

📌 Enjoying Today vs. Prepping for the Future: Many people save diligently but struggle to balance enjoying their money in the present with preparing for potential future expenses, like long-term care

📌 Getting Rich vs. Avoiding Poverty: People balance wealth-building and safety, often using a mix of investments like stocks and bonds

📌 Simplicity vs. Diversification: While financial simplicity can benefit you and your heirs, concerns about institutional failures — like cyberattacks or insurance company collapses — lead some to diversify across firms

📌 Insuring This vs. Protecting That: Your insurance choices reflect your personal worries, such as health risks or financial loss, but excessive coverage can leave you little for retirement savings

Remember: Your financial choices reveal your deepest fears and priorities. Managing money is as much about managing your emotions as it is about managing risk.