You’re probably accustomed to measuring the progress of your investments, and the overall condition of the investment world, by checking on indexes such as the Dow Jones Industrial Average and the S&P 500. And since these types of benchmarks focus almost exclusively on American companies, you might get the idea that the best investments are located right here in the United States. But that impression would be false — because there is, literally, a world of investment opportunities beyond the U.S. borders.

You probably aren’t too worried about it, but April is Stress Awareness Month. Each year, the Health Resource Network sponsors this “month” to inform people about the dangers of stress and to share successful coping strategies. Obviously, it’s important to reduce stress in all walks of life — including your investment activities. How can you cut down on the various stresses associated with investing?

Next week, we observe Earth Day. First celebrated in 1970, Earth Day has grown into an international movement whose goal is to raise awareness of the need to take action to sustain a healthy, sustainable environment. You can do your part through recycling and other measures, but you can also apply some of the lessons of Earth Day to your financial situation — and, in particular, to your approach to investing.

Life is full of ups and downs — and the financial markets are no different. As an investor, you’re no doubt happy to see the “ups” — but the “downs” can seem like a real downer. Isn’t there any way to help smooth out the volatility in your investment portfolio?

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In an uncertain economy, it’s natural for people to “tighten their belts” by cutting down on their spending. And yet by having too much cash on hand today, you could actually slow your progress toward your financial goals of tomorrow.

When you invest in stocks, you want their price to go up. But of course, you can’t control the rise and fall of stock prices. However, there is a key element of investing that you can control — the number of shares you own. And in the long run, share ownership may be more important than rising stock prices in determining your long-term investment success.

In Europe, the financial crisis drags on. China’s economic growth has slowed from “wow” to “ho-hum.” Here at home, we’ve seen heated political debates over taxes, spending and deficit reduction. Taken together, these factors have created a “fog of uncertainty” that has left many investors in the dark about their next moves. But is this “fog” really impenetrable — or can you, as an individual investor, see through it to a place of clarity?

In Europe, the financial crisis drags on. China’s economic growth has slowed from “wow” to “ho-hum.” Here at home, we’ve seen heated political debates over taxes, spending and deficit reduction. Taken together, these factors have created a “fog of uncertainty” that has left many investors in the dark about their next moves. But is this “fog” really impenetrable — or can you, as an individual investor, see through it to a place of clarity?

Tim Nguyen wants to help you make money in the stock market. In his first book, “Conquering the Bull and the Bear: A Holistic Approach to Profiting in the Stock Market,” the Ahwatukee resident offers a different approach than most other financial investment books.

If you’re somewhat familiar with investing, you probably have heard that owning mutual funds is a good way to help diversify your portfolio. Is this true? And, if so, how should you go about selecting the right mutual funds?

Once you’ve started contributing to your 401(k) plan and funded it with investments that are appropriate for your needs, you might think you’re in good shape and that your 401(k) is now on “autopilot.” But that type of thinking can actually be counterproductive, because to get the maximum benefits from your 401(k), you’ll need to revise it over time to reflect changes in your life and in the investments that make up your plan.

As an investor, you can sometimes feel you’re at the mercy of forces beyond your control. This may be especially true today, when the entire country appears to be on edge about the approaching “fiscal cliff.” What can you do in the face of such a dire prediction?

Red may be the color of the season — what with Santa’s suit and Rudolph’s shiny nose — but what if you’re dreaming of a white wine Christmas?

Thanks to a range of factors — including medical advances, healthier eating habits and better fitness — Americans are living longer lives. Life expectancy in the U.S. recently hit a record 78.7 years, and the number of Americans living past age 90 has nearly tripled during the last 30 years. But while living well into our 90s is a dream for many of us, the possibility of outliving our savings serves as an eye-opener.

Like every other investor, you prefer not to see the value of your investments drop. But at some point they will fall simply because of the ups and downs of the market. And how you respond to short-term losses can help determine if you enjoy long-term investment success.

Over the past several years, you might have heard about socially responsible investing, sometimes known as “sustainable investing” or “ethical investing.” Probably the most common way to take part in this type of investing is through socially responsible mutual funds — but are these funds suitable for your overall financial goals?

A team of four Desert Vista High School students won first place at the Junior Achievement Student Stock Market Challenge in downtown Phoenix recently. Desert Vista juniors Jasmine Coro, Julia Hackett and Jared Bernat, along with senior Chris Kontos outperformed nearly 450 other Valley high school students at the Sheraton Phoenix Hotel in a fast-paced, interactive stock market simulation that included trades and data interpretation for 26 fictitious companies. It is the fifth consecutive year that a Desert Vista team won the championship. Coro, Hackett, Bernat and Kontos won by turning $500 start money into $1.8 million dollars, the highest net worth of any group. Business teacher Bernie O’Keefe led a Desert Vista contingent of 27 students who entered the annual competition.

Hundreds of high school students from across the state wore their best Wall Street attire at the Sheraton Downtown Phoenix last week to compete in the Student Stock Market Challenge.

Hundreds of high school students from across the state wore their best Wall Street attire at the Sheraton Downtown Phoenix this week to compete in the Student Stock Market Challenge.

Time waits for no man, and neither does technology.