The world of investing is finding the balance of where to invest with your risk tolerance, return desires and timing needs so you can work toward achieving your investing goals. There are many ways to diversify your portfolio to match your financial needs, time horizon, risk tolerance and investing goals.

While any asset class can have the best performance in any given year, history has shown that stocks tend to outperform bonds as well as other fixed investments. There may be volatility over time, but in the long run, stocks are most likely to outperform other asset groups.

The following chart shows the comparison between stock and Treasury bond returns over the past 20 years. It assumes an initial investment of $10,000:

Stocks are represented by the S&P 500^® Index, which represents the average performance of a group of 500 large-capitalization stocks. Intermediate Treasuries are represented by the Bloomberg U.S. Treasury Index, which measures the aggregate performance of U.S. Treasury securities. 3.0% fixed investments are represented by a fixed-rate savings account/CD.

Generally, bonds are considered less risky than stocks. This is because most bonds aim to pay interest and return the principal investment. A bond is simply a loan from an investor to a corporation or a government entity. It has a defined maturity date, the investor will collect interest payments and if money is kept in the bond through the maturity date, the investor will get the full investment back, provided the issuer meets their debt obligations.

Consider your investment goals and the role stocks and bonds may play in building, balancing and diversifying your portfolio with Thrivent mutual funds. You can learn about your options on this website or by calling 800-847-4836.