You're a woman, 48 years old, and self-employed. Over 30% of you are single parents and the sole breadwinner of your household. You earn about $36,000 per year and are paying off more than $5,000 in credit card debt in monthly installments. You have little or nothing saved. What are you doing to protect yourself and your family financially?

The above profile represents the typical real estate agent, who, like 56% of all female workers, is earning a living wage, but hardly "getting ahead." Despite urgent and startling statistics that show the need for women to take charge of their financial lives, they too often wait until they are faced with a crisis: divorce, illness or death of a spouse or family member. And then it may be too late to make a recovery.

A recent Oppenheimer Funds survey suggests that between 80 percent and 90 percent of all women believe they will be solely responsible for their financial well-being at some point in their lives. And statistics bear this out. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, women not only live an average of seven years longer than men, they are widowed at age 57. Women heads of households are on the increase, jumping more than 37 percent since 1980. Yet, in spite of the evidence, women continue to take little action to protect themselves.

Without a financial plan in place, the future can be dark for these women. They can expect to be retired 25% longer than men, and on average single women will have less than one-third the annual income needed for a comfortable retirement. Why? Women typically save only 1.5% of their current income. When they do invest, it is cautiously, with less than half the amount of stocks as men. Not enough for the rainy days of retirement.

But it doesn't have to be that way.

According to financial advisors, it is never too late to get control of your finances. What can you do? You can begin by beginning.

Brian Estes, vice president - investments at A.G.Edwards & Sons, Inc. examines the most important factors of the female agent's finances - that they are self-employed, perhaps getting a late start on saving and investing and the need to plan for retirement.

"To prepare for a comfortable financial future, women need to save more of what they earn, begin saving earlier, and they need to make that money grow," advises Estes. "If you are self-employed, you must start putting money away for your retirement."

"You just have to start saving some of your income. It is as simple as that. Multi-employee companies can offer 401K plans, but as a self-employed worker, the agent has a different option. With a SEP IRA (Simplified Employee Pension), you can put up to 15% of your income pre-tax. "

What if you have nothing put back? Can a self-employed woman play catch-up?

"You really can't," cautions Estes, who points out that single mothers and divorcees, especially those who are self-employed, are already at greater financial risk. "That leads to the mentality of gambling and you can't do that when you invest your money. It is better to take the nice steady return over the long run, instead of trying to hit a home run. The best thing to do is just put more money away."

And there are other issues besides saving and investing. According to Sean Brown, financial advisor for American Express Financial Services, your greatest financial asset is your ability to earn income. He advises that protecting your assets is as important as earning them. Brown says, "You have to consider more than just your current income. You have to consider where you want to be in five years and at retirement. What are your other goals? Do you have children to put through college? Do you have disability insurance which would protect you from losing all you have gained and continue to provide income should something happen?"

Brown suggests that a diversified financial plan covers savings, investments and protection. In order to get started you must first evaluate your needs, develop a strategy and, most important, follow it. He also believes in diversifying your investments. It may limit the rapid growth of your finances, but you also lessen risk.

• Start with the services of a financial advisor who is near you and can work with you to develop a portfolio.

• Educate yourself about investing.

• Determine your financial goals and resources.

• Create a systematic investment plan. The sooner you begin, the faster your money will start to work for you.

• Make your investments and financial plan a priority.

• Review the results periodically with your financial advisor.