Despite Strides, Women Still Tripped Up by Confidence Gap

· Get disability insurance. The fact is you are more likely to become disabled than need life insurance.

· Participate in your employer's retirement savings plan. At least contribute enough to get the matching funds your company may offer. If your employer doesn't provide a retirement plan, then contribute to an individual retirement account or a Roth IRA.

· Pay attention to every penny you spend. For a month, write down everything you buy and determine what you can do without. Then take the savings and build an emergency fund.

The Allianz study identified the top five financial areas women want to learn about. They are:

· Planning for retirement/maintaining lifestyle in retirement.

· How to start saving or investing on very little income.

· Basics of buying smart.

· How to buy/select the right insurance products.

· Definition of basic financial terms (IRAs, annuities, mutual funds).

So what's stopping you from learning? You can start finding answers to those questions by going to http://www.choosetosave.org.

Even if the money gets tight or the financial jargon makes you wanna holler, encourage yourself to press on, learn and take action. You can be your own motivator because you're a W-O-M-A-N. Now say it again.

· On the air: Michelle Singletary discusses personal finance Tuesdays on NPR's "Day to Day" program and athttp://www.npr.org.

· By mail: Readers can write to her at The Washington Post, 1150 15th St. NW, Washington, D.C. 20071.

· By e-mail:singletarym@washpost.com.

Comments and questions are welcome, but because of the volume of mail, personal responses are not always possible. Please note that comments or questions may be used in a future column, with the writer's name, unless a specific request to do otherwise is indicated.