A woman's guide to investing wisely

IF Carrie Bradshaw (played by Sarah Jessica Parker, in the popular HBO television series, Sex And The City), is your idol, this is just what you need to read.

Like her, you are young, footloose and fancy-free, making enough money to have a great life and are thoroughly enjoying your independence.

Perhaps, you will think about helping your family later. But, right now, if you are doing any investing, it is only because of taxes.

You are not interested in building wealth and creating assets. This is, no doubt, a financially lucrative phase made all the more enticing due to lack of commitments and complete freedom to spend your money the way you wish.

But you cannot possibly spend it all because, remember, your financial resources are your strength. They will help you be independent.

So don't swipe that card at your whim, or you will feel your financial strength ebbing away.

What does a modern day woman do to handle her financial life? How and where do you invest your money?

Here are a few tips:

• Put 90 per cent of your earnings into wealth generating instruments such as shares and equity mutual funds. Since women are not traders by nature and have the patience to see the fruits of investments, they can make most of this avenue. But understand a bit about risk management first.
• Place about 10 per cent of your proposed savings into bank deposits or similar. Unlike single men, a woman should never be broke.
• Invest in life insurance prudently, and only if you have dependents on your income.
• Stay away from fixed investments such as Fixed Deposits, Public Provident Fund, National Savings Certificates, etc. Your goal is to build wealth, say, by the time you are married, which may be about three to 10 years away. These instruments will not serve your medium term purpose.
• If you are looking to get married, do ask questions to gauge how your prospective partner manages money and, more important, how he saves.
• Women are born with a softer streak so excessive gifting/helping is second nature. But avoid going overboard here.
• Beware of women-oriented offers/products such as credit cards, insurance and the like. They may be expensive or regular products repackaged.

Disclaimer: The contents of the above articles are the intellectual property and copyright of the author, Kartik Jhaveri. No part may be used or reproduced in any form or manner. If you choose to act upon the information contained in the above article it is at your own risk. This article is purely educative and you are strongly advised to consult an expert prior to taking any significant decision.