Saving for retirement can be difficult. Many Canadians find themselves in a situation where retirement is 15, 10, or even 5 years away but they don’t have nearly enough saved. They may realize that getting to their retirement goal using more traditional investment strategies and products is going to require some very serious and uncomfortable lifestyle changes. This combination of factors may cause many people to turn to seemingly-sophisticated, or private-sounding investment strategies to get them to their retirement goal.

I used to wonder how people could be drawn into these types of investments. Then, a couple years ago, I came across a great piece of writing by my friend Markus Muhs, a Senior Portfolio Manager at Canaccord Genuity Wealth Management in Edmonton. His article explains why people who feel like they are behind on their retirement savings may turn to investment fads and schemes. His article was an eye opener for me and I’ve shared it with many friends and clients since then.

I invited Markus on the channel today to have a conversation with me about it. We talked about why people in their 50’s and 60’s are susceptible to falling for investment fads and schemes, stories from his nearly 2 decades working with Canadian retail investors, different types of risky investments that can draw people in, and Markus shares some words of wisdom that may help you avoid being pulled into a risky investment scheme.