This story takes place during the 2008 financial crisis, but it's still a good lesson, nonetheless. And with today's volatile market, it's worth taking some notes from this man who lost over $500k, partially due to his representative's mistake and partially due to his own ignorance. This man wanted his money from his retirement account to be moved to a more stable market. Well, his rep misunderstood him and only placed his new contributions into a stable fund instead of moving all of his money.

Explained so that a five-year-old could understand it.

Don't underestimate the cows.