Recently, I wrote an article with 6 tips for finding good investment advice. From the feedback I received, this is an area that holds a lot of interest. In today’s post, I want to expand on avoiding paralysis by analysis, which is the first money expert tip. Here are 3 tips for avoiding analysis paralysis, which comes from having too much information, possibly even in the wrong areas altogether. 1. Figure out where you need to focus first. If you need to increase your cash flow so you can start the initial funding of a savings plan, then there is no need to spend a lot of time … [Read more...]
Want a Simple Task That’s Sure to Bring Financial Peace?
December 27, 2011 By 2 Comments
![MP900315522[1]](http://www.financialwoman.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/12/MP9003155221-150x150.jpg "MP900315522[1]")
Year end is a time when I feel drawn to create order with my personal finances as well as my life in general. With that in mind, I thought I’d share a video of an interview with Jean Chatzky on MSNBC Today’s Money. In this video, Jean shares the important legal and financial documents that everyone should not only have, but keep in a place that is easily accessible for loved ones when the need arises. The Letter of Instruction is one that is often overlooked; it’s a simple letter that lists anything that someone stepping in to handle both your personal and financial affairs would … [Read more...]
I Can’t Afford It!
September 22, 2011 By Leave a Comment
My son recently wanted to buy a Playstation with all sorts of extras. The “bundle” (as he called it) was too good to be true; it was completely irresistible. What I love about this story is that he did not say to himself: “I cannot afford it”; he asked “How can I buy it”? He calculated how many hours he needed to work in our businesses to buy the Playstation, and then worked 12 hours in a 24 hour period to make it happen before the sale ended. What do you do when you see something you want that is not in your spending plan right now? Do you say “I cannot afford it”? Or, do … [Read more...]
Tips for Real Financial Peace
August 15, 2011 By Leave a Comment
The first step to becoming a financial woman is to decide why your money matters to you. One of the steps in this process is to look at every aspect of the life you have created up to now, and then define who you want to be: your style, your life, your dreams, and your goals; define what matters to you. Examine your entire lifestyle: the car, the clothes, the jewelry, the boat, the career, the hobbies, the home and especially the job. Revisit it all because maybe the mindset that made those choices years ago is no longer valid, and maybe your precious time and money are supporting … [Read more...]
How Many Months’ Worth of Cash Do You Need?
June 1, 2011 By Leave a Comment
A common personal investing rule is to always have the value of six to nine months of living expenses in cash or cash equivalents before you begin investing. This makes sense because investment accounts typically fluctuate in value. This rule will help make sure that next month’s rent and grocery money is not subject to a 30% decline in value. What is a cash equivalent? It is a “cash-like” asset; its value stays at or near what you paid for it regardless of what is happening in the economy and the financial markets. Examples include short term bonds and money market accounts. Your … [Read more...]
What’s Happening at Financial Woman
November 23, 2010 By Leave a Comment
When I began the Financial Woman blog almost three years ago, I had no idea where it would lead me; I only knew that I felt called to share my investment knowledge with other women to help them become more comfortable and involved with their investments. I knew that would probably lead me to coaching and teleclasses. Each day I think of more information I want to share, and I would like to let you know what to expect from Financial Woman over the next few months. I am in the final stages of writing a book about what I have learned about investing that will be out in 2011. Recently, I’ve … [Read more...]
Encourage Financial Security for Children
October 20, 2010 By Leave a Comment
As founder of Financial Woman, Janet Powers invited me to be a financial expert on her radio show, Rebooting Your Mojo, with Mary Jo Rapini. On the show, we’ll be discussing financial stress and how it affects children. Mary Jo is a therapist and author of the book “Is God Pink? Dying to Heal”, which was written after a near death experience. It is my belief that children usually know what is going on anyway, even when we don’t tell them. They are intuitive little beings, so I believe it is best to age appropriately share with them what is going on with a family’s finances, even if … [Read more...]
