Some people buy investments here and there, now and then. Others open an Individual Retirement Account (IRA), put some money in it, and then forget about it. But this type of haphazard investment behavior can lead to haphazard results. On the other hand, you’ve got five good reasons for creating and following a comprehensive, long-term investment strategy.

Reason No. 1: You want to enjoy a comfortable retirement lifestyle. For most people, building resources for retirement is the most powerful reason to invest. As a key part of your investment strategy, you’ll want to consider investments that have growth potential. read more »

Most investors pay a great deal of attention to the price of their investments – yesterday’s price, today’s price, tomorrow’s price, next year’s price and so on. And that’s understandable, because we always want the prices of our investments to rise. Yet, if you focus too much on prices, you could end up making some costly mistakes. read more »

If you’re a woman, you have to be actively involved in your financial preparations for retirement — and that’s true whether you’re single or married. As a woman, you have at least two special considerations associated with your retirement planning:

You’ve got a longer life expectancy. Women typically outlive men by about seven years, according to the National Center for Health Statistics — and more years of life mean more expenses. read more »

If your investment portfolio is even moderately diversified, you probably own both stocks and bonds. And that’s a good idea, because diversification is essential to your success as an investor. But you also should know what to expect from different types of investment — because the more you know, the more likely you are to make the right moves. read more »