Flawed as he was — as all of us are — Harry Browne (1933-2006) in "The 16 Golden Rules of Financial Safety" offered some sensible suggestions. Several are redundant, many are vague, and a few are rather arguable, but like the advice in Money Wisdom (from the Harper's Bazar magazine of 31 October 1885), one might do far worse. Browne's list, abridged:

• Your career provides your wealth. You most likely will make far more money from your business or profession than from your investments. ...
• Don't assume you can replace your wealth. The fact that you earned what you have doesn't mean that you could earn it again if you lost it. ...
• Recognize the difference between investing and speculating. When you invest, you accept the return the markets are paying investors in general. When you speculate, you attempt to beat that return ...
• No one can predict the future. ...
• No one can move you in and out of investments consistently with precise and profitable timing. ...
• No trading system will work as well in the future as it did in the past. ...
• Don't use leverage. ...
• Don't let anyone make your decisions. ...
• Don't ever do anything you don't understand. ...
• Don't depend on any one investment, institution, or person for your safety. ...
• Create a bulletproof portfolio for protection. ...
• Speculate only with money you can afford to lose. ...
• Keep some assets outside the country in which you live. ...
• Beware of tax-avoidance schemes. ...
• Enjoy yourself with a budget for pleasure. ...
• Whenever you're in doubt about a course of action, it is always better to err on the side of safety. ...

_{(cf Money Wisdom (2001-05-20), Silver Skepticism (2001-07-29), Bubble Busters (2002-02-06), Dow Theory (2002-07-27), Permanent Portfolio (2003-06-02), Good Fortune (2004-12-12), Financial Planning (2008-03-15), Bad Money Counsel (2010-11-02), Boom Times Loom Soon (2012-08-30), Efficient Frontier (2014-08-27), ...) - ^z - 2019-12-24}