Smart Finance and Money Saving Tips
One of the biggest mistakes inexperienced investors make is to throw all their capital into one well-performing stock in the hopes they’ll see extraordinary returns in a short time. While this can and does happen occasionally, it is mostly blind luck, and altogether not a very wise investment strategy.
A more seasoned investor will tell you that the best way to play your money is to diversify your assets. And that, almost all the time, is the best advice you can get.
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Why Are We So Clueless About The Stock Market? Learn how to invest your money, how to pick stocks, and how to make money in the stock market by Marius Skonieczny
If you have been thinking about investing in the stock market in order to achieve your medium and long-term savings goals, I would highly recommend that you read Why Are We So Clueless about the Stock Market? . It’s well organized, easy to understand, and provides charts and graphs as well as examples in order to illustrate the main points outlined.
The author discusses the importance of doing research before simply selecting stocks to invest in. The book talks about the process of determining the value of a given stock and provides clear instructions on how to determine whether or not a company is a sound investment choice. The book emphasizes that there is no use in spending a lot of time researching a given company unless it meets certain criteria.
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There is nothing quite like tough economic times to bring frugality into brilliant focus. Survival issues drive every decision. Priorities suddenly assume an importance beyond what was ever thought possible. Health issues give way to paying the rent or putting food on the table. The price of gasoline reduces driving a car to when it is only absolutely necessary. Clothes and furniture are now luxury items that must be put off. And then you are reminded of saving for retirement. Surely, that can be put off, too?
Unfortunately, time is not on your side when you put off saving for your future well being. The price for living an older life with dignity keeps increasing, right along with everything else, and probably more so due to the hyperinflation in the medical industry. Social Security may only supply 40% of your desired retirement income. You will need additional savings, and the best time to start is always now, even if economic times are tough.
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Inflation, the ever -increasing cost of everything over time, makes a significant impact on your savings. In a normal, healthy economy, the inflation rate usually hovers around 3%. Essentially, everything goes up in value except your money. This is an important concept to understand as inflation impacts your purchasing power.
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What Works On Wall Street; A Guide To The Best-Performing Investment Strategies Of All Time by James P. O’Shaughnessy
What Works on Wall Street 
It is highly informative and contains many historical charts indicating stock market performance and much more. If you have always wanted to learn more about investing in the stock market, then this book is for you. It will take you some time to get through it as it is almost 400 pages long, but even if you skim through it, you will be sure to benefit from it.
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Investing For Canadians For Dummies 3rd Edition by Eric Tyson, MBA & Tony Martin
I think it is really important for all of us to learn as much as we can about investing so that we are fully informed when we make our investment choices. It’s good to know the difference between a stock and a bond and how a mutual fund works. If you are like me, and want to learn more about investing, diversification, and establishing financial goals, I would highly encourage you to read Investing For Canadians For Dummies
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We can all learn something about saving and investing from Benjamin Franklin. Upon his death, in his will, he donated one thousand British pounds to both Boston and Philadelphia to be used to help apprentices to start their own businesses. The interesting part of the request was that he wanted the money to be invested for 100 years. After the 100 years was up, the Philadelphia investment had grown to $172,000.00 and Boston’s fund ended up with $2.3 million.
This goes to show you how important a role compounding interest can play in your investments. The more time you have to invest, the more your money will be able to work for you. As well, this lesson from history shows us the importance of choosing investments wisely. Obviously Boston did a lot better job of selecting investments than did Philadelphia.
If you are unsure of what you are currently investing in, or if you haven’t started to save for your retirement, I would encourage you to book an appointment with a Financial Planner at your local financial institution and build a strategy for retirement and your other savings goals. The sooner you make a plan and stick to it, the better off you will be.
For more detailed information on the full story about Benjamin Franklin, check out this article.
