<prompt> Human: Im 31 and will be debt free in 2015 for the first time since my freshman year of college, so I realize I need some new goals and mindsets. I came here to learn more about all the stuff I put off diving into because you really should have more than negative money to mess with a lot of investment.I read the wikifaq and what should I do with X amount of money, and all of that seems like fine advice. I can see the point in pumping as much cash into retirement accounts early and maximizing interest potential over the years, but why do I just want to be be wealthy when I am 5559.5 or later?I have a 401k to which I contribute enough to maximize company match and it does okay. Is it really worth the tax deferred status to put all my money in this basket?I freely admit I dont know what Im talking about so thats why Im asking. It just seems to me that there are plenty of other paths, stocks, business ownership, real estate, etc that could potentially better my life now and in the future.Am I wrong?  <response>: Its a mix between tax deferral, maximization of compounding interest, and the fact that old age is expensive. 