But the important part isn't annual return, it's annual return compared to similarly risked options. Which are in the 7-8% range for the last 10 years depending

But the important part isn't annual return, it's annual return compared to similarly risked options. Which are in the 7-8% range for the last 10 years depending on when you start counting. I'm paying you to beat the average - I can achieve the average myself, at a lower risk by just investing evenly across the board. If the funds delivered 8.24%, and matching S&P would have gotten me 7.5%, then you're in fact keeping 15% of what you gambled for. And if you had delivered 7.0% I would have eaten that loss compared to the average.