This year's Halloween seems to be all tricks and no treat for most investors. Stocks have taken a beating in October, leaving many investors wondering "What now?". The markets are downright spooky right now, spookier than clowns. I hate clowns.

So, what can you do?

1. Be creative and get frugal with your Halloween costume this year. I once brought a box of cereal and a knife as my costume (I was a "cereal killer").
2. Make sure that to avoid these truly scary mistakes with your investments.

1. Investing only in "cool" stocks

In case you didn't notice, it's not 1999 anymore. When my friends discuss stocks (which is pretty rare, although more common lately), someone will without a doubt name drop a hot tech stock. I hate this.

Just because you own a few shares of Dell (down 52% this year) or Yahoo! (down 50%) or Apple (down 53%) doesn't make you cool. It just makes you un-diversified and ignorant about asset allocation. Don't name-drop tech stocks. It's really not cool. Don't only own tech.

2. Not taking advantage of free money

There may be no such thing as a "free lunch"... but there are plenty of opportunities for free money in your investment portfolio. Many companies offer 401K matching, reduced company stock purchases and more ways to get "free money".

3. Buying on a "tip"

Stock "tips" are for suckers. Any "tip" you hear on the street is either

1. already known by people with way more money than you.
2. complete bull, made up by people with probably less money than you.
3. insider information that you can't trade on anyway.

4. Too much company stock

When you're able to purchase stock in your employer at a significant discount, you should do it. Otherwise, you need to diversify away from your company and its industry. If you get laid off, not only is your stock probably down, now you're out of a job.

5. Panic selling

Just remember this: Every time you sell, someone else is on the other end of that sale, buying. What are they thinking? Are they panicking? Set specific stop losses or specific dates for selling parts of your investments. Don't sell on fear or emotion.

6. Not auto-investing

Make your investments automatic. Don't try and time the market. Nearly every broker or mutual fund worth its salt will let you auto-invest. Do it.

7. Blindly following a bozo broker

Do you know how your broker is paid? Find out. Don't leave your money in the hands of someone you doesn't have your best interests at heart. Unscrupulous stock brokers will be looking for scared money right now and will promise the world. Don't fall for a bozo!

Have a safe and fun Halloween!

Continuing with our series on vacation planning on a budget, here are some great resources to help you plan and make the most of your trip.

Planning the Trip

• TravelMuse – Use the “Inspire” feature to generate trips and possible costs for associated trips.
• Lonely Planet – Research any destination you want to visit, including the countries and background information.
• State Department – Make sure that it’s safe to travel to your destination and see what “red tape” is involved for international travel.
• TripCart – Traveling across the US? Or do you wish to stay near your own state? Use TripCart to check out all kinds of different things to do and see that are closer to home.
• TripWiser – Want to see trips other people are taking? TripWiser features real people that traveled to different destinations who have provided reviews, plans and pictures.
• TripCalculator.org – Calculate how many miles you will travel and the cost of those miles. The calculator takes into consideration your average speed and vehicle fuel economy.

Putting the Trip Together

• Orbitz, Travelocity, Expedia – These sites are staples that you should use before any trip. Sometimes one site will have specials that others will not, so it’s worth a quick check.
• TripAdvisor – This site is one of the largest review sites. Read what other people had to say about most hotels and see their ratings. This is a must-see if you’re traveling to a place you haven’t been to before.
• Kayak – This site offers fast searching for flights and hotels and allows for easy comparison with other sites, such as Travelocity and Expedia.
• TripIt – This site easily organizes your trip itinerary. TripIt is great if you’re flying, especially with multiple destinations. Just forward your emails that you receive from sites to TripIt and they put the entire trip together for you.

During the Trip

• FlightStats – Keep track of flights, and be notified if they are late or canceled. Mobile alerts are also available.
• Weather.com Mobile Alerts – Get updated on any changes that might occur while traveling.
• Traffic.com – Get updates on traffic conditions when traveling in major US cities.
• Travel Mate For Blackberry – From the publisher: "One application that helps you to track all your travel needs with a travel plan, expense tracker, check list, country fact sheets and currency converter."

Are there other sites that you use to help budget for and plan trips? Please share your favorites!

As you know, companies with which you have an existing business relationship are permitted to call you even if you are on the National Do Not Call list. That’s why I still get called about switching to my cable company’s phone service. These calls are currently permitted to be made as recorded sales calls, but a change in that area is coming.

The downside of pre-recorded sales calls is that my existing business relationship allows them to occur, but the non-interactive nature of the recorded call doesn’t let me ask to opt out of receiving such calls. New rules enacted by the FCC should significantly reduce these types of calls. Full details were outlined in Herb Weisbaum’s article, Say Goodbye to Robo-Calls.

Starting in December of this year, all recorded sales calls must have a simple interactive way for you to opt out of future calls. The rules will be even stricter as of September 1, 2009. At that time, you will only receive such calls if you’ve agreed, in writing, to receive them. Having to opt-in to receive annoying calls seems to be much more consumer-friendly than having to opt-out.

There will continue to be exemptions for certain types of calls, such as those from charities or political organizations. These organizations currently are exempt from adhering to the National Do Not Call registry. The new rules will affect them, however, for calls placed through any telemarketing company they hire to help with their fund raising efforts.

Few things are more annoying than regular telemarketing calls, but automated ones are certainly on the list. Luckily, the new rules should drastically reduce the number of unwanted calls you receive. Are these types of calls a common occurrence for you?

We are happy to report that our offering was cleared by the State of New Hampshire yesterday morning. Lenders who are New Hampshire residents can now buy notes from Lending Club. We have set up a big map in our office that shows weekly progress as state approvals trickle in - here is the smaller version of it:

Other states already cleared include Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Florida, Georgia, Illinois, Louisiana, Minnesota, Mississippi, Montana, Nevada, New York, Rhode Island, South Dakota, Utah, West Virginia, Wisconsin and Wyoming. We are hoping to keep adding a few states each week for the next few weeks as we get clearance from state authorities, and will post regular updates and notify members directly as the list grows longer.

Keep in mind that state limitations do not apply to the Note Trading Platform operated by FOLIOfn, and all lenders can buy or sell Notes among themselves irrespective of their state of residence.

The Notes are offered by Prospectus.

How many of us feel that we are just one book away from finding the insight we need to change our financial lives? Like the saying that you have to kiss a lot of frogs before you find the one that turns into a prince, so too must you read many books before you find your answer. In the end, it will probably be the collective wisdom of many books (and magazines, blogs, and life experiences) that guide your financial mindset.

Those who regularly follow my posts know that I read a lot of books. I enjoy personal finance books, but expand my choices to include business, tax, and economics books as well. At times, I read four such books in a week. Sometimes it may be one a month. My overall goal is to read at least two financial books a month, which I almost always do and often exceed.

The trouble with looking for one book to answer your questions is that in most cases the intricacies of our situation requires multiple answers from multiple domains. It’s highly unlikely to find such complicated answers from any one book. What’s more, the one book that works for you likely won’t work for someone else.

That being said, there are certainly books I would recommend. Rather than saying “if you’re only going to read one book, read this one,” let me caution that if you’re only going to read one book, you’re probably not going to see much of a change in your financial philosophy. Still, the following list might help to get you started on your own personal finance educational journey.

Start with The Richest Man In Babylon by George Clason. The wisdom in this book is timeless. The justification for the advice makes you more likely to implement it, even if it’s a concept you’ve already heard about and dismissed. The fact that this book uses parables and reads more like a novel than a self-help book makes it a great first step.

Next, try The Millionaire Next Door by Stanley and Danko. This book will likely change your perceptions of the lifestyles of those who are rich. The authors’ research shows that the small business owner living down the street with the apparently middle-class lifestyle is more likely to be affluent than someone with the appearance of wealth.

Finally, read Your Money or Your Life by Dominguez and Robin. Though dated in parts, most of this book is still highly relevant for anyone looking to increase his or her wealth, the meaning in his or her life, or a combination of the two.

These three books will provide a solid foundation, change your perception of wealth, and give you a plan of action with a high likelihood of success. As you read more, you’ll start to discover the specific finance topics that you enjoy, as well as those areas of your financial education that need the most improvement. Until I started reading so much, I never knew how much I liked behavioral economics or that early retirement was something I could easily accomplish with the right guidance.

Reviews for many of the other books I’ve read are available in the Financial Book Review archive on my blog, Richer by the Day. All of the books I’ve read recently are there and I even give away any books that I’ve purchased to readers when I’m finished with them.

Has any one particular finance book changed your life? Which books do you regularly recommend to friends? Please share your experiences and recommendations.