You are on the end of a complex and sophisticated selling operation. So 'choosing' is about getting at the truth.

The purpose of this section is not so much to enable you to chose between different products. It is to help you with the consequences of choosing products at all.

The things that matter, as always, are risk, return, liquidity, diversification. The trick is getting to the truth about these things. The issues covered in this section are those that apply to products only, not to direct investments.

The biggest enemy of returns is costs. Do Costs Matter? explains why. Costs Unwrapped explains what to look for. Portfolio Turnover describes a source of excess cost often ignored. Performance Fees unwraps the illusion of another cost drag.

Pick on Performance? explains why past performance is no guide to the future. Star Managers examines another popular but misconceived way of choosing products.

Selective Nurturing, Hype, Misleading Media and Guaranteed? explain ways in which what you are told may conceal what you should be told.

Tax Free?, The Smoothing Illusion, Percentage Games and Data Biases explains some of the tools in a skilled financial illusionist's toolkit.