If you're someone who makes widgets for a living, you're probably know a lot about making widgets. You'd probably leap at the opportunity to become a contestant on "Widget Jeopardy!" If there were a movie on widgets, you'd be hired as an expert consultant. Heck, you might even write a book on widgets. Of course, once it becomes a best seller, you'd quit your job and go on the speaking circuit, expounding across the land on the wholesome virtues of widgets.

But that leaves you with a problem. What should you do with your retirement account at the Ye Olde Widgets, Inc. 401(k) plan? You don't work there anymore and touring the country means you won't be able to conveniently contact them. There are a lot of good reasons to take your 401(k) money and run (here's ten of them: "10 Reasons Why It's Better to Rollover Your 401k into an IRA," FiduciaryNews.com, January 31, 2017). But you're just an expert in widgets. What do you know about retirement accounts?

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Christopher Carosa

Chris Carosa has been writing a weekly article and monthly column for BenefitsPRO online and BenefitsPRO Magazine since 2011 and is a nationally recognized award-winning writer, researcher and speaker. He’s written seven books, including From Cradle to Retire: The Child IRA; Hey! What’s My Number? – How to Increase the Odds You Will Retire in Comfort; A Pizza The Action: Everything I Ever Learned About Business I Learned By Working in a Pizza Stand at the Erie County Fair; and the widely acclaimed 401(k) Fiduciary Solutions. Carosa is also Chief Contributing Editor of the authoritative trade journal FiduciaryNews.com and publisher of the Mendon-Honeoye Falls-Lima Sentinel, a weekly community newspaper he founded in 1989. Currently serving as President of the National Society of Newspaper Columnists and with more than 1,000 articles published in various publications, he appears regularly in the national media. A “parallel” entrepreneur, he actively runs a handful of businesses, including a small boutique investment adviser, providing hands-on experience for his writing. A trained astrophysicist, he also holds an MBA and has been designated a Certified Trust and Financial Advisor. Share your thoughts and story ideas with him through Facebook (https://www.facebook.com/christophercarosa/)and Twitter (https://twitter.com/ChrisCarosa).