What is Mutual Fund

Far too often investment writers incorrectly assume that their readers understand what a mutual fund is. Read this article as an absolute starting point for learning about mutual funds. Then we can start tackling the tougher mutual fund subjects in a process that will make you a smarter investor. Getting Started Before I dive into the definition of a mutual fund, it is important that you have a basic understanding of stocks and bonds. There are certainly more variations of each than I will cover here, but I don't want to confuse you, so I will keep it simple. Stocks Stocks represent shares of ownership in a public company. Examples of public companies include IBM, Microsoft, Ford, Coca-Cola, and General Mills. Stocks are the most common ownership investment traded on the market. Bonds Bonds are basically a chance for you to lend your money to the government or a company. You can receive interest and your principle back over predetermined amounts of time. Bonds are the most common lending investment traded on the market. There are many other types of investments other than stocks and bonds (including annuities, real estate, and precious metals), but the majority of mutual funds invest in stocks and/or bonds. Mutual Funds A mutual fund is simply a financial intermediary that allows a group of investors to pool their money together with a predetermined investment objective. The mutual fund will have a fund manager who is responsible for investing the pooled money into specific securities (usually stocks or bonds). When you invest in a mutual fund, you are buying shares (or portions) of the mutual fund and become a shareholder of the fund. Mutual funds are one of the best investments ever created because they are very cost efficient and very easy to invest in (you don't have to figure out which stocks or bonds to buy). If you would like to know the history of mutual funds, click here. By pooling money together in a mutual fund, investors can purchase stocks or bonds with much lower trading costs than if they tried to do it on their own. But the biggest advantage to mutual funds is diversification. Diversification Diversification is the idea of spreading out your money across many different types of investments. When one investment is down another might be up. Choosing to diversify your investment holdings reduces your risk tremendously. The most basic level of diversification is to buy multiple stocks rather than just one stock. Mutual funds are set up to buy many stocks (even hundreds or thousands). Beyond that, you can diversify even more by purchasing different kinds of stocks, then adding bonds, then international, and so on. It could take you weeks to buy all these investments, but if you purchased a few mutual funds you could be done in a few hours because mutual funds automatically diversify in a predetermined category of investments (i.e. - growth companies, low-grade corporate bonds, international small companies). On the next page, I clearly explain how diversification works using a "Wheel of Fortune" concept.

Cash Management

Cash is your business's lifeblood. Managed well, your company remains healthy and strong. Managed poorly, your company goes into cardiac arrest. If you haven't considered cash management an important issue, then you're probably undermining your business's short-term stability and its long-term survival. But how can you manage business cash better? Start with understanding how good cash-management practices can influence your company's growth and survival by reading "The Art of Cash Management," Inc Finance Editor Jill Andresky Fraser's classic article on the topic. Then dive into forecasting your business-cash needs and learning how to handle a cash crisis. Assembled here are practical pieces of advice, tips and tricks from CEOs, and tools that you can use to get a handle on business cash. Handling and Avoiding Crises How Do You Define Cash Flow? If your definition of cash flow is flawed, and you're not tracking the right numbers, you may grow your company right into a cash crisis. The 10 Absolutely Must Follow Cash Flow Rules Everyone wants cash on hand at all times. Here are 10 rules to help you get there. The Magic Number Every business has a magic number. By employing his, our columnist didn't overstaff this year. Riding the Economic Roller Coaster Tighten your seatbelt. Surviving the ups and downs of the world economy means keeping an eye on business finances. When a Cash Crisis Strikes Credibility with vendors, bankers, and other creditors is built slowly, but can be destroyed quickly if your company falls behind on payments. Know how to break the bad news to preserve your business's relationships. Hot Tip: Prepare for a Cash Crisis How do you prep for a cash crisis? Wayne Karpoff, president of Myrias Software Corp., knew cash would be a problem late last year. His 15-employee, $1.5-million company dropped selling its products and became a full-time service business. So he built a contingency fund into his annual budget -- an amount equal to three months' worth of payroll. He got the idea when his bank suggested he set up a contingency fund to safeguard his mortgage payments in the event he found himself out of work. He dipped into the fund three times last year to float the company during project and payment delays. Source: Ilan Mochari, Inc magazine, March 2000 Forecasting, Projections and Budgets The Secrets to Formatting Cash Flow Projections Here are the keys to creating a powerful tool to take control of your cash flow. Cash Flow Projections Made Easy Here is a 4-step process you can use to create cash flow projections you can trust. Breaking Free from Budgets Exasperated by budgets that hamstring creativity, a growing number of companies are tossing off financial constraints--and still holding the line on spending. Budgeting for Blunders Lisa Hickey created a fund to support creative risks her Boston-based ad agency, Velocity Inc., takes when trying innovative ideas that might not pan out. A Passion for Forecasting Don't put together an annual sales forecast using only gut instinct and wishful thinking! Here are some rules you can follow to create a forecast that you and your employees can count on. Action Plan: Forecasting and Cash-Flow Budgeting Developing a budget is simple, and when created with solid sales and expense forecasts in mind, you can ensure that your budget will stand up to the daily demands of your business. Here are some steps you can take to create a cash flow budget you can rely on.