The Little Book of the Shrinking Dollar: What You Can Do to Protect Your Money Now

Seven Steps to Surviving the Next Crisis

1. Take control of your finances: Gauge your exposure to the U.S. dollar.

2. What’s your world view?

3. Consider several time horizons: 6 months? 1 year? 5 years? 10 years?

4. Consider whom you’re investing for: Yourself? Your parents? Your spouse? Your children?

5. Do I have everything I need in an emergency?

6. Can I move my money at a moment’s notice?

7. What do I do first?

1. Take Control of your Finances: Gauge Dollar Exposure

The first thing you need to do is inventory your total exposure to the U.S. economy and the U.S. dollar. Money managers and quants always know this answer, but you should too.

You probably have all of your trading and saving account data on one tidy web page, if you’re an active investor. If you’re not active, it’s time to get involved.

Make a list of all your assets and all your liabilities. Don’t forget to list all your property: raw land, houses, condos, and so on. Question each as to how it exposes you to or hedges you against the falling value of the U.S. dollar.

Perhaps you’ve already diversified into all sorts of international bonds. Perhaps you’ve got a Swiss account lying idle. Perhaps your spouse has been doing some different things from you. These are all good questions to ask yourself and find answers to.

You get bulky proxy statements in the mail or sent straight to your inbox; read them! Chances are you’ll find plenty of surprises on the funds you hold. For example, say you think you’re ...