Compounding. It’s a powerful concept, but one our grasshopper minds struggle to comprehend. Suppose I offered you a choice—$1 million in cash today or one penny that will double in value every day for a month. Most people, experimental evidence shows, would opt for the million bucks.[4] And during the first three and a half weeks of our pact, that decision would seem wise. But after just a little more time—on day thirty—that penny would become more than $5 million. We can explain the power of compounding with another chart, which you’ll notice is essentially the mirror image of its
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