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| Introduction | |
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| Looking at the Bottom Line | |
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| What This Book Will Do for You | |
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| Why Life Planning Is Essential | |
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| What You Need to Know as a Woman | |
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| Why Women Fail to Plan | |
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| Walking Through the Financial-Planning Process | |
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| Identifying What You Want from Life | |
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| What Dreams Do You Have? | |
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| How Are You Going to Achieve Those Dreams? | |
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| Women's Life Stages | |
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| Figuring Out Where You Are | |
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| Net Worth | |
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| Cash Flow | |
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| Managing the Unforeseen: The Emergency Fund | |
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| How Much of This Stuff Should I Keep? | |
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| Help! I'm Drowning in Debt! | |
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| I'm in Way over My Head | |
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| Good Debt vs. Bad Debt | |
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| Ridding Yourself of Bad Debt Without Bankruptcy | |
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| The Last Resort: Bankruptcy | |
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| What Does Your Credit History Look Like? | |
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| Creating a Spending Plan | |
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| Painless Ways to Save | |
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| Protecting Yourself and Your Assets: Buying Insurance | |
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| Managing Everyday Risks | |
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| What Kind of Insurance Do You Need? | |
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| Pay Only What's Due to Uncle Sam, No More! | |
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| Understanding Your Tax Bracket | |
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| Tax Deductions | |
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| Tax Credits | |
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| Capital Gains Tax | |
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| Cashing In on the American Dream | |
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| Tax-Favored Investments | |
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| Planning for the Golden Years | |
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| What Does the Ideal Retirement Look Like? | |
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| Achieving the Ideal Retirement | |
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| Are You on Track? | |
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| Obstacles Along the Way | |
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| Providing the Glitter for the Golden Years | |
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| Employer-Sponsored Retirement Plans | |
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| Self-Employment Retirement Plans | |
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| The High Cost of Waiting to Start | |
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| Making the Money Last as Long as You Do | |
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| Social Security and You | |
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| A Brief History | |
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| Is Social Security Going to Hell in a Handbasket? | |
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| Your Benefits | |
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| Retirement Benefits | |
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| Disability Benefits | |
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| What Women Need to Know | |
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| Household Workers | |
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| Medicare | |
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| Achieving Your Goals Through Investing | |
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| Debt or Equity | |
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| What's a Stock? | |
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| What's a Bond? | |
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| What's a Mutual Fund? | |
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| Risks and Rewards | |
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| Time Horizon Determines Risk Tolerance | |
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| Diversify, My Sisters | |
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| The Inflation Police | |
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| How to Measure Success | |
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| Using Benchmarks | |
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| The Last Big Planning Hurdle: The Last Taboo | |
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| Everyone Needs Estate Planning | |
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| What It Could Cost | |
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| Where There's Will, There's a Way | |
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| Tell 'Em What You Want to Tell 'Em | |
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| Trusting Your Assets to Trusts | |
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| Estate-Planning Tools You Need While Here on Earth | |
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| How to Give It Away | |
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| Go First Class or Your Heirs Will | |
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| What You Need to Know as Somebody's Wife | |
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| Applying What You've Learned | |
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| Where Do We Keep Our Stuff? | |
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| Taking a More Active Role | |
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| Understanding What He's Got | |
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| What You Need to Know as Somebody's Ex-Wife | |
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| Applying What You've Learned | |
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| Alimony | |
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| Child Support | |
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| The Team | |
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| What You Need to Know as Somebody's Widow | |
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| Applying What You've Learned | |
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| What to Do First | |
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| What's Needed Next | |
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| Probate and Taxes | |
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| What Not to Do | |
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| What You Need to Know as Somebody's Daughter | |
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| Applying What You've Learned | |
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| Approaching Your Mom | |
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| Eldercare | |
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| Long-Term-Care Insurance | |
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| What You Need to Know as Somebody's Mother | |
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| Applying What You've Learned | |
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| How Much Will It Cost to Raise a Kid? | |
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| Paying for College | |
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| Teaching Your Kids About Money | |
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| Grandparents as Primary Caregivers | |
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| What You Need to Know as Somebody's Partner | |
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| Applying What You've Learned | |
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| Children | |
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| Documents That Can Make It Easier | |
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| The Hired Help | |
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| How Do You Get Good Help Today? | |
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| What to Expect from the Help | |
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| What a Planner Expects of You | |
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| The Perfect Planner | |
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| Paying the Hired Help | |
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| What Will It Really Cost? | |
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| Picking and Choosing | |
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| Checking Up on the Help | |
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| Worksheets | |
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| Glossary | |
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| Index | |