INTRODUCTION
Ways to Save
Homeownership
Tax-Advantaged Savings
The Time to Invest

I. THINGS TO DECIDE AND DO
Determine Necessary Reserves
Your Dollar Holdings
Tax-Exempt Securities
Holding Your Investments
Selecting a Custodian

II. SAVING AND INVESTING
Pension Plans
It Pays to Start Early
Beware

III. THE INVESTOR'S DILEMMA
Inflating Changes the Picture
The Double Whammy
Principal and Income
Forcing Investors’ Hands
Accepting Risk

IV. UNDERSTAND AND AVOID NEEDLESS COSTS
Tangible Items
The Temptation of Art and Antiques
Real Estate
Truths Beyond Tangibles
Securities and Brokers
Wrap Accounts and Day Trading
Mutual Funds
How Funds Charge Investors
A Word on Financial Planners

V. UNDERSTANDING RISK
Single Numbers Can’t Tell the Story
Does Standard Deviation Equal Risk?
Not a Measure of the Probability of Loss
A Working Example: Fixed-Dollar Claims
Balancing Yields and Uncertainty

VI. ACTIVE VERSUS PASSIVE INVESTING
Efficient Markets and Random Walks
Index Funds
Up From Stock Picking

VII. THE WIDER MARKET
Other Indexes
Growth and Value
Diversify to Control Risk
Asset-Class Investing

VIII. THE BUILDING BLOCKS
Categories of Stocks
Why Not the Best?
Components of a Portfolio
Widening your Base
How to Choose Gold Investments
The Useless Middle
The Active Part of Passive Investing
What’s Right for You?

IX. BUILDING A PORTFOLIO
Beyond the Basics
Why Rebalancing is Important

X. WHY MOST INVESTORS FAIL
Skating to Where the Puck Was
Overcoming Impulse
Reasonable Expectations
The Deception of the Dollar.
Acting Like an Expert

Appendix A: THE HIGH YIELD DOW STOCK SELECTION STRATEGY
A Passive Approach
Why Just the Dow Jones Industrials?
Stable Dividend Policies are the Key
What About Growth Stocks?
What If Everyone Did It?
Discipline Is Essential

Appendix B: SELECTED MUTUAL FUNDS