February 2008 Blog Posts (58)

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Get Your 401(k) Matching Funds

I overheard someone yesterday talking about how they didn't invest in their 401(k) account because they thought they could get a better return on their own by buying individual stocks.



I wanted to chime in, but figured it would be rude so I need to vent my comments here.



Most companies match your 401(k) investment contributions up to a certain percentage of your income. This is basically free money! You can't find a better investment than getting free money. Your money… Continue

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Automatic Deposits Will Help You Succeed

Do you have automatic deposits set-up?



It really is one of the best ways to achieve your savings and investment goals.



I used to have a hard time saving money every month because there were so many bills to pay and so many things I wanted to do with my money. Now that I use automatic withdrawals, my investments are made before I even see the money.



I still pay my bills and spend the money in my checking account, but the process of reaching my investment goals… Continue

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Sustainable Investing

Tom Friedman of the New York Times says green is the new red, white, and blue. He says a green revolution is blooming around the world that will solve our environmental, economic, and terrorism problems all at once.



We certainly would solve a lot of our problems if we found a clean energy solution that didn't require carbon emitting fossil fuels from foreign countries.



70% of our oil use is for automobiles. I would like to invest in and purchase a clean fuel automobile as… Continue

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I Want To Retire Early

I want to retire early. I don't mean a few years ahead of time, I mean right now.



My main problem is that everything I'm interested in is not profitable.



It is not profitable to spend time with and teach my children.



It is not profitable to be a concerned citizen working to make the world a better place.



It is not profitable to take care of my body instead of sitting in front of a computer all day.



I'm sick of only being able to do things… Continue

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Speculating vs. Investing

Are you a speculator or an investor?



This is an important question to ask oursleves as we experience the current market swings.



If we are investors, we are trying to make a profit over a long period of time. If we are speculating, we are trying to make money in a short period of time with high risk endeavors.



Most of the investors I know have been taking the current market losses in stride. They understand that the market is still positive for the year. They… Continue

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Lots Of People In Debt

I was listening to a radio program last night and heard some statistics about how many Americans are in debt. The numbers were staggering.



I'm not sure what the main reason is for this large amount of debt being held by Americans.



My first thought is that Americans are working harder compared to thirty years ago, but we are bringing home less money after you adjust for inflation. In the distant past, one person could work while the wife stayed home and this could lead to a… Continue

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I'm Going To Invest In SRI Funds

I've always liked the idea of socially responsible investing (SRI).



I want to make money through investments, but I don't want to make money by being a part of negative actions such as dumping toxic waste, cutting down lumber in unsustainable ways, selling poorly tested pharmaceuticals, etc...



I want to make money while also knowing that my money is having a positive impact on our society. It is the way I do business and it is the way I want to manage my… Continue

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Investing In A Sustainable Economy

Our economy is based on consumption. Companies have been making money for generations by convincing customers that they should consume their products. We also consume energy and carbon emitting fossil fuels while producing and consuming products.



This can't go on forever in unsustainable ways. We can continue to consume products, but some of these products will no longer be available.



Oil is a perfect example. Oil companies make money by taking oil from the ground,… Continue

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Reduce Consumption Today For Future Financial Independence

The most important investment lesson I have ever learned is to reduce consumption today in order to achieve financial independence in the future.



The best thing you can do is to invest in pre-tax investment vehicles in order to reduce your realized taxable income.



If you decide to buy a big boat or house, you not only will need to spend the money on the monthly payments, but you will have to pay taxes on the money before you spend it. It is a double whammy working against… Continue

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Diversified Investments

With the market having a few wild swings lately, the investment chatter has been increasing at the gym, grocery store, and in restaurants.



I keep overhearing people talk about the stock they own.



That is where I am having trouble with the conversations. People aren't talking about how their mutual fund, index fund, or 401K is doing. I mainly hear people talking about how the current economy is effecting xyz stock.



I cringe whenever I hear people say they are… Continue

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If I Invest $100 A Month Will I Be A Millionaire?

If i invest $100 a month will i be a millionaire?



I guess the most important part of the equation is how long I will be investing $100 a month.



I did a search on Google for a compounding interest calculator (because each year my earnings will be determined by how much I have saved and how much interest my savings had earned the previous years).



The compounding interest calculator gives me the following results if I start with no money and invest $100 a month at… Continue

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SRI Funds Create Positive Returns

I saw the recent post about how more 401(k) funds are starting to include socially responsible investment fund options.



I checked with my 401(k) advisor and found out that I did have a few recently added SRI fund options. I'm now in the process of changing my asset allocation to include the new SRI funds.



Before I decided to make the change, I did some research into the SRI funds. I found out that the notion that SRI funds generate smaller returns is more myth than… Continue

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The CNBC Monopoly on Financial Information

I know some cable line-ups offer bloomberg financial news and maybe a few others, but when I watch television, CNBC is the main source for financial information.



Is it a good thing to have one company (GE) with near monopoly control over cable financial news?



There certainly are a number of programs offered on the channel, but most of them operate according to the same commercial format. They all seem to have the same goal of getting more people to invest in the stock… Continue

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Teaching Kids About Money

I'm just about to start my journey as a parent.



I've been thinking about how I want to raise my children. I know there will be a lot of things I can't plan for.



One thing I'm thinking about is how much wealth I should share with my children. I want to have some sort of allowance system so they will start to manage their own money at an early age.



I'm also wondering what type of example I should set for my children. If I have been financially successful, should I… Continue

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Annual Expense Ratio

Do you know what an annual expense ration is?

If you invest in mutual funds you should learn this term as soon as possible.

Basically, the annual expense ratio is the amount of fees paid to your mutual fund provider in ratio to the amount of your money that is actually being invested.

You need to find a mutual fund with good performance, but also with a low annual expense ratio.

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How Many Stocks Should I Own?

How many stocks should we own as individual investors? This question was brought up in one of jason's posts and it got me thinking about what the answer should be.



In the end I came away with two answers: lots of stocks and only a handful of stocks.



Let me explain.



The key to investing is being diversified. So the first answer is that you want to own lots of stocks in a wide range of sectors. This is nearly impossible to do on your own so a mutual fund is a… Continue

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Shaky Economy and Market

I'm a little worried about the recent labor report showing a loss of 4,000 jobs last month. Actually it was a net loss of 4,000 jobs after hundreds of thousands of people found jobs and hundreds of thousands of people lost jobs resulting in an overall loss of 4,000 jobs.



This is one way the economic data can be a little deceiving. Some people might ask what the big deal is if 4,000 people lost their jobs in a country of 300 million people, but the truth is that hundreds of thousand… Continue

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What I'm Learning Here

This site has been helpful in terms of keeping me focused on my overall investment strategies. I find that the more time I spend visiting and reading investment blogs, the more involved I am with my personal investment goals.



I have found that visiting this site and posting my thoughts allows me to share and learn things I normally don't share or learn when I'm just sitting on my couch watching CNBC.



I think the interaction is what I enjoy the most. One user here, jason,… Continue

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MadMoney With Jim Cramer A Pump And Dump Scam?

A pump and dump scam is where someone buys a stock at a low price and then sends out newsletters or emails to as many people as possible talking about how the stock is about to explode.



When lots of people follow the advice and buy the stock, the price of the stock goes up allowing the originall pump and dump scam artist to sell their shares at a nice profit.



When the market fundamentals kick in and lower the price because it was only hype that was rising the stock price,… Continue

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Automatically Invest Every Month

I think the best investment advice I ever received was to invest every month in an automated way.



Most of us don't have the discipline to make monthly investments. There will always be something we might want to spend money on or some excuse for why it can't be done this month.



By automating monthly investments, we pay ourselves first before we spend money on this and that.



If we pay ourselves first through a 401(k) plan, the money is be invested before it is… Continue

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