December 3, 2005
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I don’t talk about it much but I spend a great deal of time online watching my stocks. I even got my nerve up and opened an account my broker doesn’t know about. I inherited this portfolio in the divorce. My husband was retired when I left so I got no alimony, just half the portfolio. The first year I left it up to the broker, not feeling like I was qualified to have an opinion. Boy was that dumb. Like I’m his only client or something.
A year later, in 2002, I put it online so I could check it all the time. I was shocked at some of my losses that could have been avoided if I’d been on it. Stocks I was worried about I put on my tracker and started checking a couple times a day. Then I began calling my broker with all kinds of questions. I learned a lot that year and started playing with options. That was dumb.
It’s been real interesting to watch how Bob does things over at bobsadviceforstocks. You should listen to his podcast ( MY LATEST PODCAST: A Reader Asks: Could You Share some Mistakes?) He’s a darling man who does a thorough job of educating his readers. And now he’s entertaining us, too. Even if you’re not ready to invest, he’s just a really nice man with a pleasant personality. He’s got a great track record and shares everything he does, so if you like his strategy it would be a pretty painless way to get started. I applaud the way he’s taken it upon himself to educate the public by opening up his personal accounts for inspection. That’s really very generous and he’s humble about his successes. Way to be, Bob.
Comments (16)
When Knight sold his businesses…he invested in the market..his advisor was a dummy…I did not have good vibes..but then a man with an intellect does not listen to vibes.. they are a woman’s foibles….we lost it all and now do not have the nest egg older folks should have
Glad you are taking control!
I know absolutely nothing about stocks.
Ohhhh, thanks. I have bought books on the subject that haven’t been read, and want to know more…this will be great.
Hope all is well with you.
Think I will just bop on into the site, thanks for the tip…As for the question about you know who…I think part of it is made up. The styles of writing aren’t the same at all. marilyn
I have a friend who is constantly trying to get me into investments. He’s really big on bioengineering (and I think he may have something there). Just thinking about investing makes my blood pump faster! lol! I have a feeling it’ll be like playing the lottery, to me, and, knowing me, I’d have to be very careful…and invest more intuitively than impulsively. I have a tendency to get carried away…some times.
I think it’s incredibly brave, but since I’ve never had the money (until now), I’ve never considered it. If I could ever get a few of my own home projects knocked out, I’d feel better about putting up the money to see what happens.
*pauses to wonder why it’s not crossed my mind…I’m sitting on $6k, and I know my home projects won’t cost that much…*
I love you, Pru…GFW
One must be their own advocate with health, money, and love. I hate to brag but I think my fiancial advisor learns more from me thatn I do from him. Oh, and thanks for the link.
I didn’t know this about you, but the little bits make me happy.
You remind me a little of my dad (whom I worship, so it’s a good thing).
Good Morning and good luck with your stocks. Glad Bob is a good guy, some aren’t.
Happy Sunday.
Peace and Love:)
Thanks for the tip. I’ll have to stop in and check out what Bob has to say. I could stand to learn more about investing. But I stopped in here today to say thanks for visiting the forum. I know some of the topic blogs are very heavy, but some are not. Really, it’s up to the participant how they explore a given topic. This week, we’re trying something new, where each participant gets to choose their own subject. If it sounds like something you might enjoy, stop back in.
Simone
It’s too bad about the way Simone treated SavonDuJour. Petra’s my friend, and I know she wasn’t treated fairly, and, of course, I will defend anyone I care about. And then I learnt of others, too, women whose intelligence I respect, and who are good, loving people. Anyway, be careful there…
On stocks, oh I had an awful experience with a stockbroker who took us for a little ride after my Dad died, getting us to sell our stocks in a gold mine company and buy into a company where he was the vice president; we lost a huge amount. Even though I took an Investing For Women course, things went from bad to worse and eventually everything was sold off and we closed the account. For years and years you couldn’t have paid me to go near the stockmarket.
But now, recently, I have been thinking, if I had the money, it would be possible to support companies that are ethical and that are doing good and valuable work by buying shares. That’s a whole other angle, one that I didn’t have a clue about way back when. Most people who have portfolios don’t think in that way at all, at least not in my experience. Surely it’s possible to focus on return of investment in ways that are monetary and that you can support ethically too. And I don’t just mean environmentally friendly companies, even something like Google I could support- it’s a remarkable company that has/is doing wonderful things to expand people’s options, lives, whatever.
All of this by way of saying that supporting companies through buying their stocks can be not just lucrative but rewarding…
xo
What a nice comment you made! I am not sure you actually followed my trading rules
, but Weight Watchers is a great company…..something I sure could make use of as well! You have been very kind and encouraging in all of your comments. So many times investment advice sounds more like somebody selling coloring books or balloons at the circus. Lots of hype. Lots of shouting. And lots of skeptical customers.
I shall try to live up to your words of recommendation! Meanwhile, I really have to tell you that you have built a wonderful website and a great bunch of readers on this page!
Bob
Don’t tempt me… I can’t even read all the reports and understand them let alone manipulate them. But then I never let not being able to do something stop me from learning. Don’t tempt me!
Yep, good idea. It’s especially important for women to be “in the know” about their own investments. :>)
RYC: I think some of what she…wrote is full of BS. The following days after the initial problem was revealed…different. I don’t buy it at all. Fishy is all I can say…Come ahead to the party Pru, we’d love to have you..marilyn
This is an area that causes my eyes to glaze over, my brain to fog up, and my purse strings to tighten. Good for you for enjoying it. A friend of mine, laid off from high tech a couple of years ago, is studying/interning to get her financial planner’s license. She loves this stuff! Hard to start a new career in your 50′s but I think that life experience can be a wealth of knowledge about stuff you cannot learn in school.
We watched our stocks for the longest time and the last five years, they kept going down, down, down… I think we still have some but I dumbly don’t watch them. really… RYC: I wrote about it in protected but it’s a bit graphic. His middle finger on the right hand is now a bit shorter.