Description
Book SynopsisOffers a friendly, motivational approach to the essential principles of investing.
Table of ContentsAbout the Author.
Foreword.
Acknowledgments.
PART ONE: The Basic Tools of Investing.
The Pregame Show.
Chapter 1: Stocks.
Why We Own Them.
Spotting a Stock that Is Ripe for the Picking.
Where Stocks Are Bought and Sold.
How to Place a Trade.
Trading Strategies.
When to Hold, When to Fold.
Chapter 2: Bonds.
Basic Bond Features.
Bonds in the Marketplace.
Bond Issuers.
Municipal Bonds.
Government-Sponsored Enterprises.
Corporations.
Bond Ratings.
Risk: When Bad Things Happen to Good Bonds.
It Looks Like a Bond and Acts Like a Bond, but It’s a.…
Chapter 3: Cash.
Interest-Bearing Checking Accounts.
Savings Accounts.
Money Market Funds.
Taxable Funds.
Tax-Exempt Money Funds.
Money Market Accounts.
Chapter 4: Mutual Funds.
Exactly What Are Mutual Funds?
Funds: Better than Individual Stocks and Bonds?
Stock Funds.
Bond Funds.
Index Funds.
How to Pick a Fund.
Chapter 5: Exchange-Traded Funds.
Recipe for an Exchange Traded Fund.
Structure of ETFs.
PART TWO: The Fundamental Principles of Investing.
Half-Time Report.
Chapter 6: Goals.
Retirement.
College Costs.
Lifestyle Goals.
Chapter 7: Risk Tolerance.
No Pain, No Gain / No Risk, No Return.
Types of Risk.
Test Yourself: Just How Much Risk Can You Tolerate.
Ways to Contain Risk.
Chapter 8: Asset Allocation.
The Basics.
Types of Allocation.
Where to Begin.
More Assets, More Allocation.
So How Do You Fill in Your Portfolio’s Blanks?
Chapter 9: Monitoring and Rebalancing.
What’s Wrong with Holding onto Winners.
Know What You Really Own.
The Rebalancing Act: How It’s Done.
When to Rebalance: Pick a Day, Any Day.
Chapter 10: Execute Your Investment Plan.
The Self-Directed Investor: You and an On-Line Brokerage Firm.
Financial Planners.
Fee-Only Financial Advisors.
The Full-Service Brokerage Firm.
PART THREE: The Postgame Show.
Chapter 11: A New Way to Invest.
Glossary.
Notes.
Resources.
Index.
