How to choose Funds in your 401K

I came across this excellent article about choosing funds in 401k on Morningstar.com

How Not to be Overwhelmed by Your 401(k)
Even if you've got a big menu of choices, there's no reason to be weighed down.

By Christopher Davis | 02-20-07 | 06:00 AM |

Because I work at Morningstar, a lot of family and friends ask me to make recommendations for their 401(k) plans. I'm always glad to help, of course. After all, I want those that I care about to make good choices for themselves, financially and otherwise. I also think of it as an opportunity to step into the shoes of a more typical investor and see what they're up against.
If my friend Oscar's experience is any indication, many investors face a bewildering number of choices in their 401(k) lineups. Oscar recently asked me to help him pick investments for his first 401(k) plan, and he was overwhelmed. I couldn't really blame him. His employer gave him a long list of funds to choose from--36 in all--that would have taken an awful lot of time and effort to research, even for experienced folks like me. Not only did Oscar have a daunting number of options, he had to decide on an overall asset allocation and how much of each fund he wanted to own. And had he not known me, he would have probably made all of those decisions without much guidance at all.

If you're struggling with a similar situation, don't fret. To help you find your way, here are a few strategies that Oscar and I considered.

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