This week Barbara of The Best of Everything After 50 is hosting Fashion Flash. She is now the Bone Health Ambassador of the National Osteoporosis Foundation and she is getting us out there to exercise, one set of bones at a time. She is supportive and encouraging as she drives home her message that exercise is essential to good health. Check out her site not just for great exercise tips, but for information and advice that will motivate you.
Does This Make My Assets Look Fat?
I tried them all. I bought Dummies guides to finance, subscribed to the Wall Street Journal and watched Jim Cramer nightly — and still nothing. I hear the words, I’m pretty sure they are english and yet when I try to process the concepts into action…nothing.
Last month I sat in on a session on finance at the She Did It conference sponsored by Better After 50. The speaker, Susan Hirshman is a personal finance expert and author of Does This Make My Assets Look Fat? ( St Martin’s Press). Finally, things started to make sense. Ms Hirshman takes an unusual approach to explaining finance, creating parallels between dieting and investing. After establishing the basics of sound financial planning, she breaks down the risks and benefits of different types of financial products. From hedge funds to annuities to mutual funds, Hirshman helps you understand the pros and cons and to pick the best personal options.
I laughed and winced at her profiles of different investment personalities and I think I saw myself in at least three of them– Headline Hannah, Indecisive Iris and a pinch of Anchored Annie. Her five “D” chapter ( eg death, divorce, disability) is sobering but essential and her chapter on estate planning should be required reading for anyone over 40. While Does this Make My Assets Look Fat? is not a beauty book, but a healthy financial balance sheet is one of the most flattering accessories a women can have.