401(k)

You sign up for a 401(k), click through a few screens, and somewhere in the fine print your contributions start flowing into something called “Retirement 2055” or “Target Date 2050.” You didn’t really choose it — it chose you, because it was the default. That one click can shape how your money grows for the next thirty or forty years, which is exactly why it’s worth five minutes to understand what you actually own.