This is a very broad term that applies to us all. Credit, insurance, real estate planning, debt reduction, budgeting and taxes are all covered in personal finance. These things can be frustrating and hard to understand but managing them properly will have a huge impact on your ability to invest and retire, two topics we focus on in detail.

Making sound investment decisions for your portfolio is key in helping you reach personal financial goals. The wrong decisions, even early in life, can bury you. Here you will read about stocks, bonds, mutual funds and more. While we provide research material, we highly recommend connecting with a qualified financial planner that can help save you from mistakes you could make on your own. Try our free matching service here.

How much will you have by the time you reach retirement age, and will it be enough? The earlier you start saving, the more wealth you can build for the later years. For many it is hard to look that far forward but for others that time is coming soon. No matter who you are, now is the time to save more. Here you will learn more about retirement accounts such as IRAs and 401(k)s, social security, and more.

The MoneyManager.com forum is a place to discuss any of the Money Manager 101 articles or any other topic you may want to discuss with our community. Sign up today to contribute...it's free!