Motley Fool's Day

I subscribed to the Motley Fool investing newsletter 10 years ago -- the last time I planned to buckle down and get serious about my financial future. The newsletters reliably arrived in my email account. But I rarely read them and never acted upon the advice they contained.


I wasn't ready. Obviously I am now.

In just the one month of blogging about my economic stimulus, I have done more to secure a smooth financial future than I did the last decade.

So just before I celebrate April Fool's Day, I decided to check in with my old friends at Motley Fool. In preparation for receiving my $600 disbursement, I'm looking everywhere on how to invest such a small amount of money. Almost everyone advises paying down credit cards and high-interest debt before they get to what I really want to know -- stocks.

The Fool article I found is titled How to Invest $20, $100, and $1,000 (and More). Suze Orman and Jim Cramer are great resources, but this is CLOSE TO EXACTLY what I have been seeking for a while now. Now I'm learning about index investing, Dividend Reinvestment Plans (DRPs and often called Drips), and Direct Stock Purchase Plans (DSPs). Drips and DSPs let you bypass brokers and commissions by buying stocks directly from companies.

For more information on Drips, check out this other Fool article. Looks like I've got more reading to do!

Lastly, Monday, March 31, is the LAST DAY to set up Suze's Save Yourself account at TD Ameritrade -- the savings account that gives you $100 at the end of March 2009 if you commit to socking away $50 for 12 straight months. I signed up on March 12, and I've already earned a little money. My $50 investment is now up to $50.07. Sphere: Related Content

Steely Jim Cramer at Penn State

I just watched the 11 p.m. rerun of Mad Money's visit to Penn State today. I hoped to learn a few things I could apply to my economic stimulus plan. I was stunned to hear Jim talk about a steel industry renaissance.

RENAISSANCE? If I had a nickel for every time I heard someone in Pittsburgh lament that life hasn't been the same since the steel industry died, I'd be blogging about investing more than $600!

And now you're telling me it's a viable stock?

Seriously. Why do kids leave the state immediately after graduation? Poor economy thanks to dying steel industry. Why is Ambridge like that? Dying steel town.

Apparently the weak U.S. dollar makes American steel companies more attractive to folks here and around the world. The companies Jim mentioned were Pittsburgh-based U.S. Steel (helps to have U.S. Steel CEO John Surma on the program; Surma is a Penn State product to boot.), AK Steel (corporate office is in Ohio) and Nucor (based in Charlotte, N.C. I was just there!). Incidentally, I do like how Nucor tabulates tons of recycled scrap this year on its site.

Those Penn Staters really knew their stuff about what to buy and sell. I was concerned when Jim pressed them, but the kids did all right talking up Nike and EXC with the exception of the girl who hearts Allergan. Allergan's products are Botox and the Lap Band. I won't rule out the Lap Band but I am soooo not a fan of injecting stuff into my face.

Also, I find Jim's antics mildly entertaining. But the Boo-yah! has got to go. It's sooooo dated! Stuart Scott called from the late 90s. I'm pretty sure he doesn't even want his catch phrase back. Here's the Mad Money Lightning Round OT from PSU. Sphere: Related Content

Last 5 Days to Save!

The headline of this post is a little something I learned from managing ads in Hecht's advertising department: Remind the customer how many days left in an event and use an exclamation point. (I remember being told that anything more than 5 days does not create a sense of urgency. Thanks LR and T.S.!)

Anyway, there's only 5 days left to sign up for the Suze Orman/TD Ameritrade Save Yourself program! Suze has a countdown on her website too. See my post earlier this month about the plan. Also, I called TD Ameritrade today and the rep confirmed I can use the account for stock trading as well as savings (and still get the $100 bonus at the end of a year of continuous electronic deposits) as long as I DON'T withdraw the $. Buying a stock through them qualifies the $ spent on that stock as part of my Ameritrade assets.

I'm looking forward to Jim Cramer's visit to Penn State tonight. I'll be there in spirit but watch it on CNBC. Word is the release form folks have to sign to get into the event are pretty extensive. In "Cramerica," no one is allowed to trade during the on-campus show. Sphere: Related Content

WE ARE ... hosting Jim Cramer!

Love him or have to jam plugs in your ears just to tolerate his high-energy antics, Jim Cramer is coming to town. The CNBC investing guru's campus tour docks at Penn State Wednesday, March 26.

That's only 2 1/2 hours from where I live in Pittsburgh. In case I can't make the drive, I hope to post a dispatch here on My Economic Stimulus from my self-proclaimed cub reporter who hopes to hear the squawking first hand. I'm sure he'll talk about what's hot and not these days but I wonder if he'll touch on how to invest a small windfall, like say, my $600.

The market seems to be a tricky place to work these days. And this guy oft gets criticized for inaccurate predictions. Or so Gawker.com reminded me just now. The fact is ... this guy has plenty of dough so he's being doing enough things right over the years to forgive his thoughts on Bear Stearns.

Maybe he's making all his cash from publishing. The guy has more than 10 books to his credit! His show has aired on CNBC for 3 years. And if he gives loud, crazy, arm-waving advice to Penn State's faithful Wednesday that's less than fruitful, there is this one caveat: He's a Harvard alum. If only he went to Penn State like me and my scribe or Brown like JoePa. Sphere: Related Content

Inspiration for retirement

I'm not ready to retire yet.

Wow. I had to reread that just now. Sounds crazy but it's true. I feel I have more to contribute to my world, my family and my savings account before hanging up my business casual duds for good.

So mini vacations like the one I just enjoyed in Charleston are quite frankly research for where I plan to retire in a couple decades. Or at least where I plan to purchase one of my many homes. That's why I photographed this trash can. Many cans like this one dotted the beach at Isle of Palms (east of Charleston) where we stayed. I hope to live somewhere someday that's so beautiful even the trash cans are this whimsical.

So how much $ do I need to retire so I'm not living out of this trash can? I know it's more than my $600. Yet another driving force behind my economic stimulus. Here's a quickie "simple" retirement calculator. Heed the warning to check with your accountant. Sphere: Related Content

Can y'all keep a secret?

Just got back from a fun, long weekend in the Carolinas. Can y'all keep a secret? Reading a how-to book about changing the way you manage your money WHILST ON VACATION is H-A-A-A-RD, y'all! Especially when there's no internet access.

Don't get me wrong, I had a lovely time with friends and family in Charlotte and Charleston, especially upon hearing Pittsburgh got snow this weekend. We toured the beaches at Isle of Palms, the bars and restaurants of Sullivan's Island and Charleston and the historic homes, churches and graveyards of Charleston. Also did a little geocaching and picture-taking. I'm posting a few shots here.

But on flights from Pittsburgh to Newark, the delay in Newark when Continental wouldn't let us board our flight to Charlotte that was still stalled at the gate and already had our bags (Thanks Continental! You're awesome.), the flight 3 hours later to Charlotte and then the flights home to Cleveland and Pittsburgh Sunday night, I read a lot of great ideas that I couldn't act upon. For those of us who suffer from analysis paralysis, it's a slippery slope.

I'm halfway through Suze Orman's Women and Money. Suze has inserted tips on these pages (noted with a pyramid) to check her website resources center for more info. She's done this for everything from figuring how much $ you save now will become a little and a lot more in 5, 10 and 20 years to calculating your FICO score. My what?

I plan to reread sections this week so my economic stimulus will be acted upon. I was just about to get into stocks and the diversification principle when my Continental Connection (30-seater if that) bounced down on the final runway 2 hours ago.

To break up the serious stuff, I also paged through the 3/24/08 Newsweek issue and found the article on Max Levchin very interesting. He's one of the minds behind PayPal. There's a shot of this guy with 2 dogs. To boot, the article mentions a fancy investing term, IPO. Check him out. Sphere: Related Content

Bachelor #2 and then some

Back on March 11, I mentioned the cost per trade of E*Trade (12.99 + 75 cents). Now it's time to interview the other bachelors.

This information is critical to my plan, which from the start has been to make purchasing stocks the biggest part of my economic stimulus. I need to be ready to jump into the stock market by the time my $600 arrives. To this end, I need to learn more about the other companies.

TD Ameritrade charges 9.99 per trade (no minimum balance)
Charles Schwab charges 12.95 per trade (for balance under $1 million. That's me!)
Zecco charges 4.95 per trade (for balance under $2,500)
Scottrade charges $7 per trade but is a bit confusing. (Good news is you only need $500 to start an account -- first company that states a minimum that low.)
Fidelity charges 19.95 per trade (can drop to 12.95 and $8 if assets top $25K)

Zecco's graphics look a bit like E*Trade. Instead of green, it uses pink. How pretty! Are they targeting women? Too bad it's not pink and green! I bet it's popular with the Lilly Pulitzer crowd! If those preppies have even heard of it. I must learn more!

Not sure I should even consider the cheapest trading company, let alone one I've never heard of. Who is Zecco?

*****

Also of note this week, if you signed up to get your 2007 tax return via direct deposit, you're likely to get your economic stimulus disbursement quicker. Check it out. Of course, we're still looking at a May delivery date. Sphere: Related Content

When you're hot, you're ... on SNL

When I bought a Honda Pilot, I saw Honda Pilots everywhere. Now that I'm seeking saving sages, Suze Orman is everwhere.

Saturday Night Live's Kristen Wiig did a solid impression of Suze over the weekend. I actually watched SNL live the very same day I was up at 7 a.m. and downtown by 8:30 a.m. to watch Pittsburgh's St. Patrick's Day parade. The nap, and NOT drinking my weight in Guinness, helped. Here are my two favorite lines:

1. If you don't hold on to the money you have now,

life is going to pull your pants down
and punch you in the money bags.

2. Sounds good so far but I think I'm about to smell

a big, financial garlic burp.

Check out the clip:
http://www.dailymotion.com/video/x4r4mf_snl-suze-orman-show_fun

I'm not one of Suze's soldiers yet but I am up to chapter 4 in her book, Women and Money. The first few chapters are pretty basic and honestly, tempting to skip. She explains that in order to save, you need to know what and who you're saving for. It's the typical self-help crap about taking yourself seriously and articulating your goals. She also encourages you to get to know your finances, even if you have a man around to do that now, you never know when you're the one left holding the money bags. Or getting kicked in them.

I've resisted skipping ahead to chapter 6, titled the Save Yourself Plan, thus far. So what the heck? I wrote down a few goals on a Post-It note. It's stuck somewhere in chapter 3. I don't feel like the goals are attainable yet with $600 but my economic stimulus has to start somewhere.

Also related to Suze, I got a package in the mail from TD Ameritrade today, congratulating me on opening my Save Yourself Account. I did this on Suze's advice. I received a nice little booklet that reviews everything I learned on the TD Ameritrade website when I signed up last week for the account to extend my economic stimulus into 2009. You still have time to sign up for the account that gives you $100 at the end of March 2009. Deadline is 3/31/08. Sphere: Related Content

Too rich for my (dog's) blood?

This is going to be harder than I thought.

I dorked out recently and subscribed to Smart Money Magazine. I did this for two reasons. First, I knew 2008 was the year of my economic stimulus and that I was going to actively invest. Second, I got an Amazon gift certificate from Cam (thanks Cammy!) and figured I already read people.com so much that I don't need to scan the rag in doctor's offices anymore.

There's an article in Smart Money's April issue titled Oasis of Growth that highlights a few good stocks to pick during a recession. The one that appealed to me most was Idexx Laboratories (IDXX). Like any animal lover, I would scrounge for loose change under sofa cushions everywhere to save my baby boy Sherman's life. (That's my "little" guy running with his cousin, Paulie.) Idexx is a medical equipment company that caters to vets (MRI equipment, blood work machines, etc.) and runs its own labs. The latter made me laugh because I run my own lab too (see picture!), albeit a black lab.

Anyway, the sad part? IDXX closed at $49.80 a share today. So with my $600, I could get a measly 12. Twelve shares is not the portfolio diversification I had in mind. Perhaps I should be a bit more frugal for starters.

The thing is I heard a while back that you should invest in something you care about. Not sure of this tidbit's source. Adam thinks it was Warren Buffett. I'm not up on my multi-billionaires so maybe. But I found something along that line from Peter Lynch as quoted in this Investopedia article:

"If you stay half-alert, you can pick
the spectacular performers right from
your place of business or out of the neighborhood
shopping mall, and long before Wall Street
discovers them."

Lynch's picks from the article are PepsiCo, Columbia and Whirlpool. Hey ... I have a Columbia fleece. Maybe I can get more out it than the warmth I count on in this cold house we're renting. Columbia fell 1.78 to 42.14 today ...
Sphere: Related Content

What's in your wallet (and where's it going next week)?

While researching where to invest my economic stimulus dough (and not exercising today), I stumbled across this poll. You too can vote and see what other folks are doing with their $600 windfall. I'd love for you to comment on my blog about your own plans. Just click the comment link at the end of this post.

Also, even though this $600 is "free" money, I'm giving myself a backup plan. So to ensure I have another $600 to play with next year, I signed up for Suze Orman's Save Yourself Plan. I'm new to Suze's revolution and have yet to read any of her books. Last week, I heard her talk about the savings plan on what must have been the 13th hour of the Today Show that day. It's through TD Ameritrade. Which reminds me ... I need to check out TD Ameritrade's trading plan and compare it to E*TRADE. I'll try to post some quick thoughts tomorrow.

By the way, I highly recommend the savings plan if you can stand to monitor another electronic bank account. I set it up in about 10 minutes. If you open the account before 3/31/08, deposit the minimum of $50 and contribute at least $50 monthly through March 2009, you'll get the 2.75% interest PLUS $100 as long as you don't withdraw before 3/09. Yes, E*TRADE savings has a higher savings rate but nothing that compares to $100+ on a measly $6-hundo. Thanks Suze!

P.S. to Mom: No need to pick up Suze's latest book, Women and Money, for my half-birthday, which is Thursday. I bought it over the weekend. Sphere: Related Content

E*TRADE (or Bachelor #1)

I realize there are many ways to grow my $600. I've tried 401ks and Roth IRAs and ignored more ESOP opportunities than I care to admit. So to pick an investment tool and proceed with my economic stimulus, I turn to a BFF from a previous life, Mae West (pictured):

"When choosing between two evils, I always like to try the one I've never tried before."

To be honest, I always planned to buy stocks (and maybe bonds) with most of my windfall. Shortsighted maybe. But stocks are the sexier evil. And with all the hubbub about people losing $ on stocks these days, I'm hoping it's a buyer's market by now and whatever I pick grows my ca$h tout de suite. Even if I pick something stupid (er, poorly researched).

E*TRADE has 2 stock-trading options. And since my $600 is far less than the $50,000+ tier, the price per trade here is $12.99 + 75 cents.

More "shopping" for rates later this week. Shopping is fun! I think Mae would agree. I think she would approve of my research too ... that is what she meant by this gem, right?

"It's better to be looked over than be overlooked." Sphere: Related Content

Here goes ...

If life is what happens when you're making other plans, then this blog is what happens when those plans fall through.

And so begins my first blog entry.

I am a goal-oriented gal living north of Pittsburgh. Since I am still striving toward some 2007 goals, I started this blog to keep me on point for 2008. This blog will track what I do with my $600 portion of the Economic Stimulus Act of 2008. Rather than spending it all at once to stimulate the economy (Sorry George Bush!), I've got a better idea.

Treating this 6-hundo as a windfall, I'm going to investigate where and how to invest it and double my money. Aim higher? Triple it then. We'll see. It's been a while since I really paid attention to my finances. So first and foremost, I hope to learn about the ups and downs of the market, risk and patience.

Perfect timing too because the Economic Stimulus Payment Notice arrived on Saturday, March 8. The IRS is pleased to inform me my windfall is coming ... in May. Sphere: Related Content