<prompt> Human: I just started an IRA to get in before the 2016 deadline, thanks PF!.Im 30 and want to retire when Im 60. Do I really need to diversify to start or can I diversify as I contribute more over the next year or two? For example, Im looking at FSCSX. 13 over the last 10 years. Apple, Microsoft, Google, etc. These are strong companies, I really cant see them going anywhere but up over the next 5 years, when I will have plenty of money to distribute to other categories.That 13 is tempting to drop everything in, even though I understand the need to diversify over time. But what about the short term? Can I pretty safely drop in my first 5500 into 1 tech mutual fund? What could possible go wrong?  <response>: Do I really need to diversify to start?No. That depends on your risk tolerance. That 13 is tempting to drop everything in, even though I understand the need to diversify over time.What happened over the last ten years is not necessarily what will happen over the next ten years. Over the last ten years we had relatively open markets, the rise of smart phones and their ecosystems, the move to the cloud, the rise of alternative energy sources, no tech bubbles. Who knows what the next ten years will bring? But what about the short term?You are investing over the next three decades. Thats not short term. Forget short term. Can I pretty safely drop in my first 5500 into 1 tech mutual fund? What could possible go wrong?In February 2000 the NASDAQ composite index was 6716. September 2002 it was 1572. Thats a loss of 73 of your value due mostly to technology stocks. You wouldnt regain that value until... well, we dont know. Its only back to 5897 today.The NASDAQ composite index is heavily weighted towards IT companies. It tracks one sector closer than it does the overall market. If you look, instead, at a more general index like the SP 500 the numbers for those three dates are 1388 in February 2000, 867 in September 2002 and 2363 today. You would have only lost 38 during the DotCom Bubble crash and regained the lost value back in 2006, slid back down during the 2008 crash and regained again 2011. Today youd be ahead 70 versus down 13 if you had stuck with the tech-heavy strategy.If I were in your shoes, Id diversify. 