No matter what type of retirement account your employer offers, it can be an important part of your retirement plan. For our conversation today, we’re focused on the 401(k) but what we want to talk about can be applied to any of the other options.

When it comes to the 401(k), it seems like there are two primary types of people. The first are those that set up their investments and leave their account alone. The second group is always checking the account and making changes and adjusting investments. You can wind up with good results either way but both have their negatives.

First off, you should be evaluating your investments on a consistent basis. Companies and sectors are always changing and moving. What’s working for you today likely won’t be your best option in a couple of years.

Of course everyone wants to do the best they can on their own. That’s how this account was set up: for independent investing. But I’ve found there are very few people that can carefully – and accurately – assess their portfolio analytically and make the correct decisions on where to contribute their money.

The beauty in the 401(k) is that financial advisors can now assist you in this process. You don’t have to do everything on your own. At Johnson Brunetti, we ask you to bring in your statement when you come in to meet with us. We’ll take that and look through your portfolio. Once we’ve reviewed everything, we’ll help you make investment decisions for your account. The great part of it is you can fire us at any time and go another direction.

The important takeaway for this episode of the Money Wisdom podcast is to understand that you need to be looking over your portfolio every 2-3 years at least and utilize the help of a professional to build a group of investments that carry you forward towards retirement.

0:28 – The plan for today’s show.  

1:52 – What goes wrong when you don’t pay enough attention to your account?

3:10 – What about the people are obsessing over their 401(k)?

5:15 – Joel shares a story about a strategy that a huge company in LA uses.

6:12 – What’s the best way to get help in a 401(k) when it’s set up to do it yourself?

7:50 – How investing has changed in 401(k) accounts.

* At 9:12 in the audio, Joel talks about how we manage 401(k) money. We offer this through RMS, a third-party money manager that manages 401(k) dollars.