Next week, we observe Labor Day, which honors all the hard-working men and women in the United States.

As an investor, you’d like to think all your investments are working hard, too — including the ones producing income. But can your income-oriented investments be productive when short-term interest rates are at historic lows? Or can you find other investment possibilities that could potentially boost your cash flow?

The answer to both these questions is yes — but you may have to take a closer look at where you stand on the risk-reward spectrum.

For example, you might need to consider longer-term income producers, which typically pay higher yields than shorter-term equivalents. Longer-term fixed-rate securities, such as bonds, must pay these higher rates to reward investors, who face interest-rate risk — possibility that interest rates will rise, causing the existing bonds' value to fall — and inflation risk, the threat of losing purchasing power by the time long-term bonds have matured. Still, you may be willing to accept these risks in exchange for higher yields.

However, you may be looking for income producers that can work hard for you without having to hold them for a long period to maturity. This is because the “yield curve” — the line that plots the relationship between yield and maturity — is fairly steep right now, which, in English, means you can gain noticeably higher yields by modestly increasing your investments' maturity.

Your financial adviser can suggest some short-term and intermediate-term vehicles that may be appropriate for your needs. While these rates will still not be as high as those offered by longer-term vehicles, they do offer flexibility — along with less interest-rate risk and inflation risk.

You can also help protect yourself from these risks by building a “ladder” of short-, intermediate- and longer-term bonds and certificates of deposit. Your ladder can help you weather changing interest-rate environments. When market rates are low, you’ll still have your longer-term bonds and CDs earning higher interest rates. And when market rates rise, you’ll be able to reinvest your maturing short-term investments at the higher levels. If you need the cash, you can liquidate the maturing bonds and CDs.

Thus far, we’ve only looked at fixed-rate investments — but you may also be able to boost your income by owning dividend-paying stocks. Some companies have paid — and even increased — their stock dividends for many years in a row. If you’re not in need of the cash, you can reinvest the dividends and boost your ownership stake, which is a key to increasing your wealth. But if you do need the money, you can take the dividends as cash.

Keep in mind that income producers are not a “sure thing” because companies can decide to reduce, or even discontinue, their dividends at any time. In addition, history tells us that you may experience more price volatility from stocks, and they can be worth more or less than the original investment when sold.

As you can see, you can find ways to keep income-producing investments working hard for you, despite prevailing low interest rates. So consider your options, weigh the risks — and then work with your financial advisor to make choices right for you.

This article was written by Edward Jones for use by your local Edward Jones financial advisor.

This article originally appeared on Crestview News Bulletin: Keep income producers working hard — even when rates are low

All investments carry risk. But, as an investor, one of the biggest risks you face is that of not achieving your long-term goals, such as enjoying a comfortable retirement and remaining financially independent throughout your life. To help reach your objectives, you need to own a variety of investment vehicles — and each carries its own type of risk.

If you spread your investment dollars among vehicles that carry different types of risk, you may increase your chances of owning some investments that do well, even if, at the same time, you own others that aren’t. As a result, you may be able to reduce the overall level of volatility in your portfolio. (Keep in mind, though, that diversification can’t guarantee a profit or protect against all losses.)

To diversify your risk factors, you first need to recognize them. Here are some of the most common types of investment risk:

• Market risk — This is the type of risk that everyone thinks about — the risk that you could lose principal if

the value of your investment drops

and does not recover before you sell it. All investments are subject to market risk. You can help lessen this risk by owning a wide variety of investments from different industries and even different countries.

• Inflation (purchasing power) risk — If you own a fixed-rate investment, such as a certificate of deposit (CD), that pays an interest rate below the current rate of inflation, you are incurring purchasing power risk. Fixed-income investments can help provide reliable income streams, but you also need to consider investments with growth potential to help work toward your long-term goals.

• Interest-rate risk — Bonds and other fixed-income investments are subject to interest-rate risk. If you own a bond that pays 4 percent interest, and newly issued bonds pay 5 percent, it would be difficult to sell your bond for full price. So if you wanted to sell it prior to maturity, you might have to offer it at a discount to the original price. However, if you hold your bonds to maturity, you can expect to receive return of your principal provided the bond does not default.

• Default risk — Bonds, along with some more complex investments, such as options, are subject to default risk. If a company issues a bond that you’ve bought and that company runs into severe financial difficulties, or even goes bankrupt, it may default on its bonds, leaving you holding the bag. You can help protect against this risk by sticking with “investment-grade” bonds — those that receive high ratings from independent rating agencies such as Standard & Poor’s or Moody’s.

• Liquidity risk — Some investments, like real estate, are harder to sell than others. Thus, real estate is considered more “illiquid” than many common investments.

Make sure you understand what type of risk is associated with every investment you own. And try to avoid “overloading” your portfolio with too many investments with the same type of risks. Doing so will not result in a totally smooth journey through the investment world — but it may help eliminate some of the “bumps” along the way.

This article was written by Edward Jones for use by your local Edward Jones Financial Advisor.

This article originally appeared on Crestview News Bulletin: SHANKLIN: Diversify your investment risk

Listening has become a lost skill. It seems like an easy thing to do, listen, but I believe it has become complicated by our need to show we are prepared at all times.

Being prepared is a good thing; not paying attention when one should be listening is not.

I do not generally count myself as a good listener; I talk too much. My grandmother used to say, "God gave you one mouth and two ears, so that you can listen twice as much as you talk." Of course, that was lost on a little child.

As I get older, though, I am learning to listen more and trying to develop listening as a skill.

Many of us, when we should be listening, instead are thinking about how we want to respond, so we fail to truly listen to what is being said.

In workplace meetings, we don't want to seem unprepared, so rather than concentrating on what is being said, and the accompanying facial expressions and other nuances that go along with the words, we concentrate on formulating our response. 

We all want to look intelligent when asked a question; and while I don't advocate being surprised and unaware for the inevitable questions, I do advocate listening and watching carefully. Many times, we can learn as much from the unspoken facial expressions of others as we do from the spoken words. It is amazing what one can learn just by watching and listening.

What has gotten me to thinking about listening is visiting with our elderly family members, friends and church members. Many times what they want is for someone to just listen.

They don't need answers, just a kind person to listen to their concerns and their remembrances of days gone by. When I take the time to really listen to an elderly person, it is an eye-opening and joyous moment.

Take time to truly listen and spend time with your elderly family members. They have so much wisdom to impart. You will be amazed at the knowledge they can share if you will take the time to sit down, listen and let them speak without interruption.

Share some kindness this week, by truly listening to others.

If you see me on my jaunts around town, please say "hi."

Janice Lynn Crose lives in Crestview with her husband, Jim; her two rescue collies, Shane and Jasmine; and two cats, Kathryn and Prince Valiant.

This article originally appeared on Crestview News Bulletin: CROSE: Listening is a lost skill