The rap on women as investors is that as a group, we tend to be too cautious.
Caution certainly seems warranted these days as the stock market swoons and the financial news all seems bad.
But as Jim Jubak explains in his recent column “When to start investing? Now,” those who dive in when others are fleeing tend to do very well over time.
If you’re in or near retirement, you’ll want to consult with a fee-only financial planner before making any big moves either into or out of this market. You can get referrals from the Garrett Planning Network. (You also might want to schedule a session even if all you need now is a little hand-holding.)
But if you’ve still got a few decades before you’re going to quit work, this could be a prime opportunity. You may have to strap in for a bumpy ride, but history has shown us that those who stay in the market prosper in the long run.
TAGS: financial crisis, financial planning, Investing, women and investing
Watching our portfolios slide in value is never fun, and this time around we have the double whammy of knowing our home prices are down as well. I’ve offered some suggestions on my Web site about how to keep from panicking, including turning off the doom-and-gloom commentary and tucking away a bit more cash as a safety net.
Most of the surveys I’ve seen on the topic suggest that women, when they invest, are better investors than men because we trade less often, are less likely to be “overconfident” and more likely to learn from our mistakes. But too many women shun the risk of the stock market because of times like these and deprive themselves of the superior long-term returns only stocks can give.
We shouldn’t let the day-to-day noise of the markets scare us out. If you have an investing plan, stick to it; if you don’t, get one. FinancialEngines.com can help do-it-yourselfers create a retirement portfolio, or you can hire a fee-only planner from NAPFA.org or GarrettPlanningNetwork.com.
TAGS: financial planning, investments, market turmoil, stocks, women and investing
