inflation is a real bitch. 20 years from now you're going to think that the power of the dollar was amazing today too. again, inflation is a bitch. buy the stock index, set it and forget it, it is your only chance.
Ehh I don't trust the stock market these days. Good way to lose a LOT of money with very little control or foresight over it. I prefer "invest in your home & your necessities so you have less to replace & put $$$ out for in the future".
you need to look at the long term trend of equities in general, then compare the amount of $1 invested to alternatives. like i said, it is your best chance.
you need to look at the long term trend of equities in general
Unless it somehow turns out that AI isn't a thing that impacts markets, I don't think past trends are worth considering in the same way.
For one, the long-term trend of the market was rooted in a postwar order that lent itself to increasing wealth in US markets. First, the US was the only manufacturing base left after WWII, and the only source of reliable credit in the entire world. By the time the world's manufacturing base shifted away from the US, the service economy benefitted Americans disproportionately and the digital revolution began in earnest.
Now, as we see the fruits of the digital revolution come to bear with the rise of AI (arguably the endpoint of the digital revolution), life will shift as fundamentally as it did when markets shifted from agrarian/merchant based economies into the industrial/capitalist world that followed.
I'm not qualified to speak as an authority on any of this (I'm still contributing to my 401k, fwiw), so take it all with a grain of salt, but people REALLY need to consider that we might be living through an epoch similar to other revolutionary times in human history.
so in consideration of the potential that we might be living through an epoch similar to other revolutionary times in human history.................you continue to contribute to your 401k, which is aligned to my recommendation.
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u/LostinParadise4748 9h ago
EXHAUSTED but also wish I was smarter with my teenage money instead of blowing it on weed, accessories for my car, and name brand clothing.
The power of the dollar back then was amazing, I don't see half as many teens working bc what they make "isn't worth it" or something these days