Let's Get Real About Money!

Contents......Page 10
1 Getting Real, Not Real Obsessed, About Your Money......Page 20
The Surprising Wealth-Happiness Connection......Page 23
Buying the Good Life......Page 25
Choosing Your Role Models......Page 26
Personal Finance Quiz I—The Basics......Page 28
Answers to Personal Finance Quiz I......Page 32
Scoring and Evaluating Your Quiz Results......Page 33
Personal Finance Quiz II—Key Concepts......Page 34
Answers to Personal Finance Quiz II......Page 38
2 Getting Motivated......Page 42
Personal Finance Quiz III—Avoidance Behaviors......Page 46
Understanding Why We Procrastinate......Page 48
Conquering Money Avoidance and Disorganization......Page 49
3 Your Money Beliefs and Practices......Page 54
Your Money History......Page 55
Taking Stock of Your Money Background......Page 56
Your Friends and Money......Page 58
Your Environment and Money......Page 59
4 Developing Your Personal Financial Action Plan......Page 60
Background Information......Page 62
Assets......Page 63
Planning......Page 66
Retirement Expectations Versus Means......Page 67
Pension Decisions......Page 78
Major Purchase Planning......Page 82
College Cost Planning......Page 83
Prioritizing Different Goals......Page 85
5 Love and Money......Page 86
How Men and Women Handle Money Differently......Page 88
Finding Financial Peace as a Couple......Page 91
Money and Divorce......Page 97
Money Passed Down: Estates and Inheritances......Page 99
6 Families and Money......Page 102
Priorities: Work Versus Family......Page 104
Balancing Family and Work: Spend Less, Work Less......Page 106
Teaching Kids About Money......Page 111
What (and How) Kids Learn About Money......Page 112
Getting Children on the Right Financial Path......Page 114
7 Valuing Saving and Spending......Page 122
Why Most People Have Trouble Saving Enough......Page 123
Buying Things You Don’t Need......Page 128
Excess Spending and Its Consequences......Page 130
Can You Save Too Much?......Page 132
Postponing Achievable Dreams......Page 135
When Enough Never Is......Page 137
Gaining Appreciation for What You Have......Page 139
Balancing Spending and Saving......Page 141
8 Establishing a Savings Foundation......Page 142
Giving Yourself an Unfair Advantage......Page 143
Keeping Money Accumulation in Proper Perspective......Page 150
9 Your Spending Plan......Page 154
Tracking Your Spending......Page 155
Necessities Versus Luxuries......Page 157
Budgeting Strategies......Page 158
Housing Expenses......Page 160
Taxes......Page 161
Autos and Transportation......Page 162
Clothing......Page 163
Insurance......Page 164
Charitable Contributions......Page 165
Reducing Your Taxes......Page 166
Using Your Tax Rate......Page 168
Taxes and Children......Page 172
10 Borrowing and Debt Management......Page 174
Ways to Borrow in Emergencies......Page 175
Right Reasons to Borrow......Page 176
Borrowing for Home Purchases......Page 178
Choosing a Mortgage......Page 179
Refinancing......Page 181
Paying Off Debt Early......Page 182
Assessing Consumer Debt......Page 183
Strategies for Getting Out from Under High-Cost Consumer Debt......Page 184
Compulsive Spenders and Debtors......Page 185
Do You Have a Shopping Problem?......Page 186
11 Investing for Bountiful Harvests......Page 188
Proven Intelligent Investments......Page 191
Stocks......Page 192
Real Estate......Page 195
Small Business......Page 198
“Safe Money” Investments......Page 199
Investing in Stocks or Funds......Page 200
12 Cultivating Good Investing Habits......Page 210
Understanding Fees......Page 212
Monitoring and Trading Your Investments......Page 213
Chasing Hot Sectors......Page 216
Developing Better Investing Habits......Page 218
13 Pundits, Predictions, and Confronting Your Fears......Page 222
Jim Cramer: Stock Market Maven or Uncalibrated Opinions?......Page 223
How Predictions Affect Investors......Page 227
Addressing Investing Fears......Page 230
14 Your Investing Plan......Page 232
Assessing Your Current Portfolio......Page 234
Asset Allocation......Page 236
Worksheet—Asset Allocation for Retirement......Page 237
Allocations for Shorter-Term Goals......Page 243
Selecting the Best Mutual Funds......Page 244
Selecting the Right Money Fund......Page 247
Investing in Stock and Bond Funds......Page 248
Worksheet for Actively Managed Funds......Page 251
15 Insurance......Page 256
Don’t Sweat (Insurance for) the Small Stuff......Page 258
Insurance Not to Buy......Page 260
Buying Your Way out of the Costliest Risks......Page 261
Long-Term Disability Insurance......Page 262
Life Insurance......Page 263
Health Insurance......Page 266
Insurance on Your Assets......Page 267
16 Managing Risks Involves More Than Buying Insurance......Page 268
Buy a Home at Low Risk for Natural Disasters......Page 269
Maximize Your Personal Health......Page 271
Buy a Safe Car and Reduce Your Driving Risks......Page 272
Conquer and Avoid Addictions......Page 275
Gambling......Page 277
Substance Abuse: Drugs and Alcohol......Page 280
Smoking......Page 287
Protecting Teens and Kids......Page 290
17 Your Insurance Plan......Page 292
Health Insurance......Page 293
Disability Insurance......Page 296
Life Insurance......Page 299
Will, Trusts, and Estate Planning......Page 300
Auto Insurance......Page 302
Home Insurance......Page 304
Excess Liability Insurance......Page 305
18 Information and Edutainment Resources......Page 306
Understanding the Role of Advertising......Page 307
Question What You Read and Hear......Page 311
Books......Page 314
Who’s Your Rich Dad?......Page 317
Financial Books and Authors Worth Reading......Page 319
19 Hiring Financial Help......Page 322
The Keys to Finding the Best Advisors......Page 324
Financial Advisors and Planners......Page 327
Budget Counselors......Page 329
Investment Managers......Page 330
Real Estate Agents......Page 332
Tax Preparers and Advisors......Page 336
Attorneys......Page 337
B......Page 340
C......Page 341
E......Page 342
G......Page 343
I......Page 344
L......Page 345
M......Page 346
P......Page 347
R......Page 348
S......Page 349
T......Page 350
X-Y-Z......Page 351