Should I Invest in Individual Stocks or ETFs in Retirement?

Is it worth investing in individual stocks or should you simply go with ETFs? Joe has recently parted ways with his financial planner and is beginning to manage his portfolio himself and was wondering about the benefits of these choices. 

Tanya Nichols and I will explore Joe’s questions as well as others on this episode of Retirement Answer Man. Listen in to hear the benefits of owning ETFs vs individual stocks, how to structure your Roth conversions, and what to do about health insurance before Medicare. 

Making decisions is rarely a cut-and-dry process

When making decisions, we usually look for a clear answer: yes or no, do it or don’t do it, jump or don’t jump. However, judgment calls are rarely so simple. Usually, we are operating without all of the pertinent information, so we have to make assumptions about how the future will look. 

The process of brainstorming is messy. There is no crystal clear way to go about making decisions, and once you do you probably won’t know if you chose correctly. 

When confronted with choices you’ll want to have a framework to explore decisions in an organized way. Then you’ll want to relax and consider all the options. When you take the pressure off you’ll have more opportunities to come to a good decision. Next, dive into the process and see what comes. You may explore several different scenarios before coming upon your final decision.

What I’m reading

My strategy for reading this year has been to make reading my default activity. Reading is what I go to when I’m waiting in line, have spare time at home, or when I’m taking a walk (via audiobooks, of course!). This new mindset has led me to read 33 books so far this year. Today I wanted to share with you the most recent books I have read and my thoughts on them. 

Boys in the Boat by Daniel James Brown is an inspiring book that I highly recommend. It chronicles a member of a crew team in the 1920s and 30s and his life journey from childhood and then on to the 1936 Olympics. 

Quit was written by Annie Duke the author of Thinking in Bets. Annie was a professional poker player turned decision-making expert. In this volume, she examines how hard it is to quit something once you have started.

Put Your Ass Where Your Heart Wants to Be by Steven Pressfield is a fast read–you could finish it in a day. This is a great book that helps people work on challenging goals. This book will help you get past the resistance. 

Courage Is Calling by Ryan Holiday is a book that will enrich your soul. 

It Takes What It Takes was written by Trevor Moawad who was a performance coach for elite athletes. This book on mental conditioning promotes the thesis that if you want to be great at something you have to make a choice to do the things to make you great. Making the choice to be exceptional clears the path to greatness because it takes everything else off the table. 

The Dichotomy of Leadership by Jocko Willink was written for leaders on the aspects of finding the virtuous mean. 

If you have any great book recommendations I’d be happy to hear them. Just head on over the Ask Roger page and leave an audio suggestion or write it in. 

OUTLINE OF THIS EPISODE OF THE RETIREMENT ANSWER MAN

PRACTICAL PLANNING SEGMENT

• [1:23] On making decisions
• [4:11] What I’ve been reading

LISTENER QUESTIONS WITH TANYA NICHOLS

• [19:33] Should Joe invest in individual stocks or ETFs
• [27:36] What to put in Roth conversions
• [32:45] What should Todd do about insurance between the ages of 58 and Medicare?
• [42:22] Looking for resources on the ex-pat life

TODAY’S SMART SPRINT SEGMENT

• [44:38] Treat people as they could be

Resources Mentioned In This Episode

Align Financial

BOOK - Boys in the Boat by Daniel James Brown

BOOK - Quit by Annie Duke

BOOK - Put Your Ass Where Your Heart Wants to Be by Steven Pressfield

BOOK - Courage Is Calling by Ryan Holiday

BOOK - It Takes What It Takes by Trevor Moawad

BOOK - The Dichotomy of Leadership by Jocko Willink

Phil Stutz

Rock Retirement Club

Roger’s YouTube Channel - Roger That

BOOK - Rock Retirement  by Roger Whitney

Roger’s Retirement Learning Center