KAREN C. ALTFEST, PhD, CFP, is Vice President of L. J. Altfest & Co., a financial planning and investment management firm. She is also the Director of the Financial Planning and Investment Programs at New School University. Altfest is actively involved in financial planners associations and has written many articles for professional journals. She is frequently quoted in such publications as Working Woman, the New York limes, the Wall Street Journal, and Family Money, and is a regular guest on CNN and CNBC.