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Retirement Planning > Saving for Retirement

3 Reasons Peter Drucker Could Have Run Your 401(k)

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Peter Drucker was an American management consultant, educator and author. He’s also one of the most influential people in the history of modern business management and considered to be “The Father of Modern Management.”

Drucker had a keen insight into how humans relate to each other. I see the application of many of his business management philosophies in to how participants in individual company 401(k) retirement plans can improve their investment performance.

Below are three great Drucker quotes and the reasons he would have been a great investment advisor to these retirement plan participants.

Reason 1. “If you want something new, you have to stop doing something old.”

Buy and hold is the predominant company 401(k) retirement plan investment management strategy today. Individual investors live in hope that they don’t lose the last several years of their company 401(k) retirement plan contributions, company matching monies and investment gains in the next great stock market decline or interest rate rise.

When you really “hope” that something bad will not happen to your company 401(k) retirement plan account, you are announcing to the world that you intend to take no responsibility. You intend to take no action yourself to keep another round of historic stock market losses away from your retirement savings.

When you hope, you are making the emotional commitment to “do nothing.”

It is very likely that your current mutual fund selection process and corresponding investment performance can be improved. The best way to improve is to change the way that you manage your company 401(k) retirement plan going forward.  

Reason 2. “The best way to predict your future is to create it.”

Most individual company 401(k) retirement plan participants are creating their own future in their working careers. They are also in the process of shaping the family that they have always dreamed about.

You can never predict the direction of the stock market or interest rates. But there is investment management technology available today that allows you to improve your current and future investment management decisions.

You can rank your default company retirement plan mutual funds on investment performance and annual costs. A concentrated company 401(k) retirement plan account with the best-performing and lowest-cost mutual fund options available to you is your best chance for growing and preserving your retirement assets.

Reason 3. “Do what you do best and outsource the rest.”

This is my favorite Drucker quote. I am sure that this same concept has been credited to other business leaders. But Drucker stated this concept simply and best.

All of my individual company 401(k) retirement plan advice clients are successful in their working careers. They are at the top of their professions and work hard for their clients.

These clients have all been able to reach a very specific mental and emotional decision in their careers. That decision is to hire an independent, third-party fiduciary investment advisor to improve their company 401(k) retirement plan investment management decisions.

Very, very few individuals reach a world-class level of sophistication and expertise in more than one profession. There are as many horror stories about doctors and lawyers managing their own stock and bond investments are there are jokes on the same topic.

The most successful individual company 401(k) retirement plan participants stick to what they know best, and how to continue to maintain and grow their practice. Investment management functions are best left to professionals in that industry.


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