Financial sage and author Sharon Epperson CNBC’s, senior commodities and personal finance correspondent covers the global energy, metals and commodities markets on CNBC and ancillary NBC platforms, will lend her expertise this week at Spelman College’s ninth annual Leadership and Women of Color Conference. She’s joining a panel of experts who will cover the topic: “The Role of the Media in Wealth Building” on Thursday, May 16, 2013, at 11 a.m.
“One of the things that surprised me when I was doing research on this topic were the difference in how the general public receives information on finance and how African Americans, largely, get information about finance. I found that all groups [source] the Internet to find out as much information as they can. But the general public gets a lot of their information from family and friends, and paying a financial adviser for advice. Our community doesn’t necessarily have the network of friends and family to provide that type of information. We also are more reticent to pay someone for financial advice, worried that the person will not provide the best information or scam us,” Epperson says.
“We really use the media quite a bit to get information on financial information. We will provide a list of the best sources to gain investment knowledge.”
Epperson’s first book, The Big Payoff: 8 Steps Couples Can Take to Make the Most of Their Money-And Live Richly Ever After, was a finalist for the Books For A Better Life Awards, honoring works that have “changed the lives of millions.” She also was a contributing writer in the book, The Experts’ Guide To Doing Things Faster.
Here, she shares why we need to understand how to invest and offers research tips. –yvette caslin
Why is important to have an understanding of investing?
It’s important to understand investing, how to grow your money and how to build wealth. It’s also important to know how you can lose money and the risks that you take when you are investing. Novice investors, who are uncomfortable with the market, fall in one of two camps. One, they don’t take enough risks because they are so worried they will lose their money. Then there are others who want to make a lot of money really fast. The reality is, if you need money for a new car or money for your child’s education, in the next five years, you have no business investing in the market. But, if you are trying to create a secure retirement for yourself, have your debts paid and hopefully leave a legacy for your family and loved ones, then you need to be an investor. You need to invest long term for the 10, 20, 30, 40 years. The best case is when you start as early as possible. Instead of buying a video game for your kid or a new iPad, you buy them a share of stock in some company that they love so they can learn to invest and how to appreciate ownership in a company that will potentially grow and make a lot of money over time.
What are some good tools and resources for investors?
CNBC.com’s personal finance section is a good place to start and immerse yourself in some good personal and business finance stories. There’s good information about taxes, retirement and college debt. I like Motley Fool, they make investing simple and easy to understand; Kiplinger and I have to say I love Wall Street Journal, it provides a really good overview of how everything is tied to money.
