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◈ GLOSSARY · INVESTING

Diversification.

A definition, in plain English — with the books that teach it.

ClearValue Books · reviewed against sources ·
DEFINITION

What it means

Definition

Diversification means spreading money across many investments so that the failure of any one doesn't wreck the portfolio. It works because different assets don't all fall together — when one zigs, another tends to zag. It doesn't protect you from a broad market crash, but it does protect you from being wrong about a single stock.

IN PRACTICE

Example

Owning 500 companies through an S&P 500 index fund is more diversified than holding three tech stocks. If one of those three goes bankrupt, you lose a third of your money; if one of the 500 goes bankrupt, you barely notice.

RECOMMENDED READING

Books that explain this

The Simple Path to Wealth
Jl Collins
The Intelligent Investor
Benjamin Graham
A Non-Random Walk Down Wall Street
Andrew W Lo
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