I started out balanced pretty well and tried to play it safe. My step dad is a smart money man and I trust his judgement. He told me that since I was young he would invest high risk high yield and gradually over the years move to the safe more secure side. He told me I could take a hit now and gain it back, but later in life it is much tougher. That is my plan and it's all I have based mine off of. I dropped the slow rate of return stuff and went with high yield after a couple years and haven't looked back. I rarely check it, maybe a couple times a year so it always seems to be doing well.