The Winning Portfolio

"Being a do-it-yourself investor means taking full responsibility for creating a portfolio of high-performance, low-cost mutual funds that you'll be able to hold on to for the long term."

"Start early."

"There's nothing like free money being invested in your mutual funds."

"The way you divide your money among investment alternatives?accounts for 90 percent of your portfolio's overall success "

"The risks involved in guessing market swings far outweigh the potential profits."

"As the playing field levels, competition is creating exciting new low-cost opportunities in the financial services."

"The point of investing your savings is to beat inflation by taking some calculated risks on the market."

"Shoot for six to ten funds"

"The past performances of the fund and of its manager are the two best indicators of the probable success you can expect from your investment."

"Investing is not as complicated or as mysterious as Wall Street wants you to believe."

"Over 65 percent of all large-cap stock funds are in three peer groups: growth, equity-income, and growth and income."

"Research shows that the average long-term return for aggressive growth funds is only about 1 percent higher than the returns for growth funds."

"If you insist on investing overseas, it makes sense to stick with funds that invest in the developed nations, particularly in Europe."

"The biggest problem with sector funds is the inability of most investors and professionals to time market twists, turns, and cycles."

"Think of a hybrid fund as a one-fund mini-portfolio."

"Index funds are a hot item."

"Ask yourself if you really need bond funds in your portfolio."

"The key to a successful mutual fund portfolio is selecting the right asset allocations."

"Remember that buy-and-hold investors are long-term strategists."