Corrections or additions?
This article by Melinda Sherwood was published in U.S. Newspaper
on September 22, 1999. All rights reserved.
For Women’s Lib Try Wall Street
Wall Street may be the last stop for women en route
to financial independence, says Diane Harris, former senior
editor at both Money and Working Women magazines. “We no longer
think that Prince Charming is coming to take care of us financially,
or we know that intellectually, but we’re still not doing everything
we can to manage our money wisely,” says Harris. “Women need
to invest, think long-term, and take more risks.”
“It Takes Money, Honey,” is the title of Harris’ book, a
non-jargony
approach to personal finance in terms that women can relate to.
“The
title was meant to be sassy, slightly irreverent, and show that it’s
accessible to everyone,” says Harris, who addresses the New Jersey
Association of Women Business Owners on Tuesday, September 28, at
6 p.m. at the Valley Regency Caterers in Montclair. Call 973-783-1833.
Cost: $40.
What stands between women and financial success is not intelligence,
stamina, or drive, says Harris, but in some cases, an aversion to
money. “This is a woman’s thing — this notion that it is not
OK to be thinking about money, that it’s not a noble goal,” she
says. “Money is about much more than money, it’s about how to
achieve power and independence and life goals. If you want to achieve
a better balance between professional and personal life, that takes
money. If your goal is to have a business, that takes money. It’s
in our better interest to stop saying money doesn’t buy happiness,
money doesn’t matter. It doesn’t buy happiness but it’s hard to be
happy without it.”
Harris holds a BA in American culture from Vassar, Class of 1978,
and received a masters in journalism from Columbia University in 1979.
Harris doubts she would have ended up being a personal finance expert
had she not fell into it after graduation. “I only took one
economic
course, I never thought I would be doing this instead of saving the
world,” she says.
She did find a way to save more than a few people from imminent
financial
ruin, however, and made plenty of mistakes along the way. The first:
not following her own advice. “I was writing about personal
finance
issues for a decade before I ever turned that attention to my
life,”
she says. “I was amazed to find out that yes indeed, it is
empowering
when you start to invest, and you see your money grow quickly.”
Harris now contributes a personal finance column to Parenting and
Parenttime, part of Time-Warner’s website, and is a contributing
editor
at Oxygen Media, a new cable and Internet company launched by
Geraldine
Laborn and created through a partnership between Nickelodeon and Oprah
Winfrey. The topic of her second book: men, women, and money.
One of the problems common among both women and men, says Harris,
is living from paycheck to paycheck. “We’ve done surveys that
show that’s true, whether a person is making $15,000 or year $150,000
a year,” says Harris. So it’s not about what you don’t have in
the way of cash flow, it’s what may be lacking in habits and mindset.
Some new strategies for financial success:
Step up to the plate. Although the sports metaphor maynot speak to women here, perhaps the “dinner table” metaphorwill: women have historically concerned themselves with putting breadon the table at the end of the day, says Harris, rather than puttingit away for a rainy day. “Women focus on the here and now, menfocus on the long term,” she says. “Men focus on retirement,women focus on fixing-up the house or taking care of the kids.”We need to put more money into our future, says Harris, and nurtureits growth. “Compounding is truly like an application of MiracleGrow — your money earns money, your earnings earn earnings, andso on.”Don’t crash diet. Allow yourself some indulgences.”It’snot about doing anything stringent or dramatic that will make us feeldeprived,” says Harris. “If you have a passion for HaagenDazs and you never allow yourself that, your diet is doomed tofail.”Put your savings on automatic pilot. Elect to have acertainamount taken out of your check each pay period. Once you have takenthat money out of your hands, you adjust, says Harris.Take more risks, i.e. invest. “Women typically useCDs, not stocks, but the only one that is going to beat inflationis the stock market,” says Harris. One of the hurdles is gettingwomen to realize that inflation is in fact worse than taking a lossonce in a while. “Men are interested in making money, women areinterested in not losing any,” she says. It’s even possible toget started on a shoestring — a minimum of $25 a month.Don’t over-think it when it comes to investing. “Womentend to really do their homework, which can be an asset,” saysHarris, “but we tend to over-research. We don’t feel like we havethe time to sit down and learn everything we need to know to investwisely, but it’s so much easier than we’ve been lead to believe –at least the basics are.”Be vigilant. “If a raise is not what you’re expecting,then stick to your guns,” says Harris. “It doesn’t need tobe a fight, just a quiet statement of what you’re worth.” Forthe consummate researchers: read salary surveys, and talk tocolleaguesand headhunters.Most importantly, says Harris, be willing to make mistakes.”Two clients — a man and a woman — and the stock drops50 percent,” Harris hypothesizes. “The man will blame thebroker, the market, or the idiot on the golf course who gave him thetip in the first place. The women will blame herself,” she says.”We’ve just got to get over that.”– Melinda SherwoodTop Of PageBalancing ActWomen who want to return to college for a first or seconddegree can learn the “balancing act” the right way. RiderUniversity, which has an extensive continuing studies program foradult students, is offering courses specifically for women who needto gain the courage and the organizational skills to get back on anacademic track.”Horizons: A Program for Women Returning to College” is afree evening series that addresses common complaints of adult students:having to weed through pedantic text books or cope with stress. Thefirst Horizons meeting is Thursday, September 23, at 6 p.m. at Rider’sCollege of Continuing Studies in the Student Center. Any woman consideringgoing back to school is invited to attend. The next class, “RenewingYour Study Skills: Efficient Strategies for Reading Textbooks,”begins on September 30 at the Rider University Learning Center. Classeson October 7, 14, 21, and 28 cover library research, career options,and stress. Call Karen Crowell, assistant dean, for more informationat 609-896-5033.Top Of PageJob Seeking HelpSome companies offer extended job search services froman outplacement agency to their downsized employees. Some do not.If you are conducting your job search without the armor of expertadvice, you can sign up for free week-long workshops sponsored bythe Jewish Family & Children’s Service of Greater Mercer County.Ten people in managerial, technical, or professional fields can attendthese workshops taught by specialists from the New Jersey Departmentof Labor at the JFCS conference wing, 707 Alexander Road, Suite 102.The program is open to the public and is free (thanks to a grant fromthe United Way of Greater Mercer County) but preregistration is required.To register call Fran Parker at 609-987-8100.The all-day seminar will begin Monday, September 27, 9 a.m. to 3 p.m.,with additional classes on Wednesday, September 29, and Friday, October1. On the agenda: How to plan and conduct a job search, how to usejob-finding resources, how to cope with the multiple stresses of jobloss, unemployment, and job seeking.Previous StoryCorrections or additions?This page is published by PrincetonInfo.com— the web site for U.S. 1 Newspaper in Princeton, New Jersey.
