🥚 Your Salary + Your Investments = Too Many Eggs in One Basket
You’re excelling at your company, your equity is growing, and your portfolio keeps climbing thanks to one stock—your company’s. It feels like you’re riding a rocket ship.
But here’s the reality: when your income and your investments are tied to the same company, you’re not diversified—you’re exposed. And that can unravel your financial future faster than you think.
Let’s talk about why diversification is the wealth strategy you can’t afford to ignore—and how to do it without killing your upside.
🛑 The Danger of Doubling Down on One Company
Meet Brian. He’s sharp, successful, and confident in the company he works for. His:
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Salary? Comes from the company.
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Stock options? Tied to the company.
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401(k)? Overloaded with the company’s stock.
For a while, it’s a dream scenario. Until the company misses earnings, faces a scandal, or hits an economic speed bump.
Suddenly, Brian’s paycheck and portfolio both take a hit—and there’s no cushion.
This isn’t just a hypothetical. It happens all the time.
🏛️ Even the Strongest Companies Hit Rough Patches
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Meta (2022): Down over 60% in a single year.
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Amazon: Lost nearly half its value during a market correction.
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Nvidia (2024): $600B in market cap gone in a day due to global competition.
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Fisker, Canoo, IronNet: Once promising tech firms—now bankrupt or dissolved, leaving employees with worthless equity.
If giants like Apple and Microsoft have had near-death moments, no company is too big to fail—or at least flail.
📈 The Real Path to Building Wealth
This isn’t about abandoning your company’s stock or being bearish on its future. It’s about protecting your upside.
Wealthy investors don’t get rich by riding one stock forever—they build systems that:
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Lock in gains
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Limit downside risk
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Grow consistently over time
As Morgan Housel puts it in The Psychology of Money:
Wealth is what you don’t see—and the key to keeping it is survival.
💡 How to Diversify Without Killing Your Momentum
Let’s break diversification down into three levels:
1️⃣ Company Level – Don’t Bet the Farm on Your Employer
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Sell a portion of your company stock regularly
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Rebalance your 401(k) if it’s company-heavy
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Use proceeds to invest in index funds, bonds, or real estate
2️⃣ Industry Level – Don’t Ride One Sector Forever
Tech, energy, finance, healthcare—every sector has seasons. Even within tech, diversify into:
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Cloud computing
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Semiconductors
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Cybersecurity
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Artificial intelligence
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Consumer tech
3️⃣ Asset Class Level – Mix Up the Game Plan
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Real estate offers income and long-term appreciation
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Bonds offer stability during market volatility
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Alternative assets like gold, crypto, or private equity offer unique hedges
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Cash reserves can help you pounce on opportunities when markets dip
💡 Think beyond your company and your industry. Smart investing is about playing both offense and defense.
🎯 The Real Goal: Control, Not Certainty
You can’t predict what the market will do—or how your company will perform next quarter. But you can control your exposure.
Diversification doesn’t mean you’re disloyal or bearish on your employer—it means you’re playing the long game. You’re building a plan that thrives even when the unexpected happens.
Because the one thing every successful investor has in common?
They protect their downside.