Make sense of your cents during Money Smart Week

Learn about investing, retirement savings, and how to get the most out of your money during Money Smart Week at Mentor Public Library.

When it comes to money smarts, if you don’t have sense, you’ll be left without any cents.

That’s why Mentor Public Library is hosting a series of programs designed to help people learn about investing, couponing, saving for retirement and, in general, making smart financial decisions. It’s called Money Smart Week and it runs from April 20 through 25.

It also gives everyone a chance to learn about different financial topics in a nonthreatening, impartial environment.

It can be intimidating or even embarrassing to talk frankly about money. Some people may not feel comfortable walking into a bank and asking a lot of financial questions. Hosting these programs at the library lets you listen to and ask questions from an expert on neutral ground.

The programs include:

• Everyday Saving with Joe the Coupon Guy at 6:30 p.m. on Monday, April 20. To kick off Money Smart Week, Joe "the Coupon Guy" Daugirdas will share how to save money on every grocery trip. Learn how to keep your budget in line and save money on everything and anything.
• Women, Money & Finance at 6:30 p.m. on Wednesday, April 22. Whether you're preparing for the future, facing career changes, transitioning into retirement, or any number of other financial turning points, together we can address your concerns and turn challenges into opportunities. Carol Ganser, a financial and income specialist, will discuss topics pertinent to women, and address any questions you may have.
• Investment Basics at 6:30 p.m. on Thursday, April 23. Learn the basics of investments from an expert at the Society for Financial Awareness. We'll discuss what types of investments there are, how to invest, and how to protect your money. Come prepared with questions, and learn how to make your money work for you.
• Retirement Planning Basics at 1 p.m. on Saturday, April 25. Ease your road to retirement by planning ahead. Join a speaker from the Society for Financial Awareness as we discuss all aspects of retirement planning, from investments to income.

All Money Smart programs will be held at our Main Branch.

Also, for each Money Smart program you attend this week, you'll receive a ticket for a drawing; and the winner will receive a very money smart prize.

For more information on Money Smart Week at Mentor Public Library, visit www.mentorpl.org or call (440) 255-8811 ext. 215.

The 25 Biggest Money Mistakes People Make

We kicked off Money Smart Week with a visit from Gregory Berlin from the Society for Financial Awareness Tuesday.

Berlin listed the 25 biggest mistakes people make with their money.

Without further ado, they are:

25 Biggest Mistakes

1. Procrastinating to avoid financial decisions.
2. Having financial goals that are too general, undefined or unrealistic.
3. Not having a financial plan or having one that obviously won't work (which is the same as not having a plan.)
4. Ignoring the effect of taxes on your financial plan.
5. Going uninsured against death, disability and liability.
6. Ignoring the cost of living inflation in your plans.
7. Having your long-term financial plans depend too heavily on the current fad. Right now, that would be tech stocks.
8. Making decisions based upon fear, greed or other emotions.
9. Doing all your financial planning yourself to save a few dollars.
10. Being too conservative or, conversely, too aggressive.
11. Not understanding the concept of asset allocation.
12. Concentrating your investments instead of diversifying.
13. Putting all of your money into hot companies. (This mistake is akin to #7. That's not investing; that's speculating.)
14. Being overly influenced by your friends and family.
15. Placing market-timing bets. (Once again, that's speculating, which is high risk.)
16. Failing to take profits or cut losses.
17. Having too much idle assets. (To phrase this differently, this is the rare situation of having too much cash on hand. You're always going to need some liquidity, but burying all your bills in the backyard prevents your money from making money.)
18. Assuming things will just work themselves out.
19. Demanding immediate results and satisfaction.
20. Wanting everything guaranteed.
21. Lacking discipline in regard to spending, savings or investment.
22. Overrating anyone's expertise. No person, firm or magazine can guarantee where any market or security is going and when.
23. Not understand the many problems with money.
24. Overly relying on uncertain future income like expected inheritances, promotions, winning the lottery etc.
25. Wanting something for nothing.

Money Smart Week continues through Saturday, upcoming programs at Mentor Public Library's Main Branch include:

• Make Cents: Understanding the Long-Term Financial Commitments brings experts from three different banks to the library’s Main Branch. They will demystify common banking topics for the layperson. This Q & A panel session is from 6 to 7:30 p.m. on April 10.
• Solving the Retirement Income Puzzle, where people can learn how to manage their retirement income and avoid running out of money. This talk will be from 2 to 3 p.m. on Friday, April 11.
• Show Me the Money, a special program for kids from 1 to 2 p.m. on Saturday, April 5. Children will learn about currency and make their own piggy bank.
• Duct Tape Wallet, in which teens can get creative while making their own wallets out of duct tape. The program is from 2 to 4 p.m. on April 12.

For more information on Money Smart Week at Mentor Public Library, visit www.mentorpl.org or call (440) 255-8811 ext. 215.