“When your dream appears as an opportunity, you must have ready cash to take it home with you.”

- Anonymous

Welcome to Money-Smarts, MsMoney.com's weekly newsletter of financial facts, features, and tools. Money-Smarts is designed to provide quick and useful information to help secure your financial future. Enjoy, and tell a friend about MsMoney.com!

In This Week's Issue:

• Market Summary for Friday, June 9, 2000
• Tips for the Week: Daily Advice to Help Get You Through the Week
• Read the Latest: On Being a Woman
• Run the Numbers: What's Your Net Worth?

Market Summary for Friday, June 9:

Close

Net Change

Percent Change

DJIA

10614.06

-54.66

-0.51%%

NASDAQ

1456.95

-4.72

-0.32%

S&P 500

3874.84

-49.28

+1.29%

30-Year Bond

5.89%

+0.01

N/A

Source: Reuters

Tips for the Week: Daily Advice to Help Get You Through the Week

Monday: The mix of vehicles in which you invest determines approximately 90% of your investment performance. Understand the different asset classes and which investment vehicles make the most sense for you, given your goals. Learn more about asset allocation.

Tuesday: During a job search, don't put all your eggs in one basket. Try to get several job offers--it will give you substantial leverage when negotiating a compensation package.

Wednesday: Put your emergency cash fund to work--make sure you have it in a money market account. Learn more about opening a money market account, minimum balances, and interest rates.

Thursday: Don't spend a dollar to save thirty-five cents in taxes. The "If I borrow money, the interest is deductible" approach has led many a borrower down the wrong--and expensive--path.

Friday: Are you a compulsive shopper? Don't buy anything over $100 without going home first and thinking about it for 24 hours. Learn more about taking control of your money.

Read the Latest: On Being a Woman--How our Differences Shape our Investment Techniques

By: Nicole Alper

Come on, we all know it's true. Our mothers say it. The psychiatrists analyze it. And of course John Gray spelled it out in a series of bestselling books.

Men and women are different.

And despite the stark--even cloying--quality of the cliche, buried somewhere in this simple declaration there is, I believe, a weighty nugget of truth.

So the issue then is, how are we different, and how do those differences influence the way we handle, namely invest, our money?

According to Ruth Hayden, author of How to Turn Your Life Around: The Money Book For Women, many of the more appealing "female" characteristics, such as patience, tenacity, and pragmatism make us better investors than men, once we actually get started.

"Women have an intuitive sense. They are practical and understand that things work in stages and are therefore comfortable with volatility. And once they're in the market, they'll stay put." More-->

Run the Numbers: What's Your Net Worth?

Simply put, your net worth is a measure of where you stand financially. It's akin to a snapshot of your financial state. Determine your net worth now!

Questions

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