The Snowball on a Mountain

A snowball sits at the top of a mountain. It starts small. But as it rolls, it picks up more snow, and each turn grabs even more. By the bottom, it's a boulder. That's compound interest. Your money earns returns, then those returns earn returns of their own.

The critical word is TIME. A snowball that rolls for 30 years crushes one that rolls for 10 — and not by a little. The extra decades do most of the heavy lifting. Starting early isn't just helpful. It's the whole game.