The Cask of Amontillado

By Paul R. Ruedi, CFP®

Edgar Allen Poe was a master of the horror genre, and one of my favorite short stories of his is “The Cask of Amontillado.” The story, which takes place in an Italian town during festival season, consists of the narrator exacting revenge on a man named Fortunato, who he feels has wronged him. To do so he lures Fortunato into an underground vault by promising to show him a cask of fine wine. However, once he has Fortunato where he wants him, he proceeds to build a brick wall right in front of him, trapping him inside forever. The inebriated Fortunato doesn’t realize what is happening until it is too late.

As a financial advisor I can’t help but notice when people build walls and trap themselves financially. It often happens slowly, or doesn’t seem like a serious issue at first, only for a person to discover the seriousness of the issue when it is far too late. I can think of several examples, but the one I see most often is overspending.

People are often lured into a lifestyle of overspending by modern day casks of Amontillado. Exotic vacations, fancy cars, and expensive nights out are enticing enough that people can’t help but take the bait. Overspending can often go on for years, with cash reserves dwindling and credit card balances building up slowly, just like the wall in front of Fortunato. Unfortunately, people often only become motivated to do something when the situation has become completely desperate. By then it is often too late.

Putting off saving is another example of a financial wall that builds slowly. People often think they can delay and figure out how to save for retirement down the road, not realizing they are slowly building a problem for their future that will be very difficult to overcome. Another example is having too conservative of an investment portfolio that won’t produce the inflation-adjusted returns to fund your spending in the later years of retirement. Another would be longevity, or outliving your money on the back end of retirement.

Suffice it to say, there are many financial walls that can slowly build over time unnoticed. These walls should be as horrifying as the wall being built in Poe’s story, but people usually don’t see them that way. They often don’t even notice them until it is too late. I encourage you to look for any areas in your life you may be slowly building financial walls. If you can’t identify them yourself, you may want to talk to a financial professional who can.

Paul R. Ruedi is a Certified Financial Planner™ professional with Ruedi Wealth Management in Champaign, Illinois.