Levin: Playing 'Would you rather?' with your money will teach you a lot

There is a game that kids play called "Would You Rather?"

In it, they put forth choices that are usually gross. Like: Would you rather lick a floor or lick a toilet? There may not be a right answer, but how a child answers is often funny.

As an adult, thinking about financial problems in that way can be illuminating.

Would you rather have your money safely stored in a bank account yielding less than 1% or would you rather own a basket of bank stocks yielding over 2%?

The answer to this probably depends on a couple of things: your time horizon and your risk tolerance. If your time horizon is less than three years, you don't want to take risk with your money by investing in something that pays a bit more but could drop in value. If your time horizon is 10 years, you can accept volatility in return for higher current income and upside.

It is all the time in between where the trade off between upside and downside may be more difficult to discern. If you are afraid of the market, place a number on how long you are willing to tie up your money. If it is seven years, then put 70% of it in vehicles that should do better than that savings account.

Would you rather share with your children what you want to do with your money or would you rather surprise them?

Many of our clients either don't want their kids to count on an inheritance or don't want to let the kids know what may be coming their way. But if there is going to be an inheritance, it can make a huge difference in the choices the next generation makes.

If you know you want to help provide for college planning for the grandkids, talk about it. This may allow your own kids to make different savings choices. Of course, your financial situation could change, but talk about that, too.

Would you rather make charitable bequests when you die or see your money being used when alive?

This is almost always a scarcity question. People who have named charities in their estates would often prefer to give money away while they are living but are concerned that they may not have enough. Try a little of both.

There are almost no decisions that are binary in the way "Would you rather?" suggests. You can invest some, help your kids some and give some to charity. Use "Would you rather?" as a tool to test your leanings rather than as a forced choice.

Spend your life wisely.

Ross Levin is founder and chief executive of Accredited Investors Wealth Management in Edina.