Opportunity Investing: How to Profit When Stocks Advance, Stocks Decline, Inflation Runs Rampant, Prices Fall, Oil Prices Hit the Roof, … and Every Time in Between

Chapter 4. Income Investing—Safer and Steady … But Watch out for the Pitfalls

The Four Legs of Your Investment Portfolio

Suppose that we think of your investment portfolio as a solid, firm table—a table meant to support your assets, financial needs, and retirement income with relatively small risk of overturning or collapsing.

Such a table could not stand at all if it had only one or two legs. It might be able to stand on three legs, but would almost certainly be unstable and prone to accident should the weight of its burden shift (and especially if one of its legs gave way).

However, a properly built table with four strong legs can safely support considerable weight and can withstand shifts in the weight of its burden and vibrations in the floor ...