Project Your Own Future

Run the Rule of 72 on your own money. Say you put $10,000 in a retirement account at a 7% annual return — the long-term stock market average.

Doubling time: 72 ÷ 7 ≈ 10 years. Start at 25 and you get four doublings by 65: $10k → $20k → $40k → $80k → $160,000. Start at 35 and you get only three, ending at $80,000. That 10-year delay costs you $80,000 — half your final nest egg.