There are several different types of investments and many factors in determining where you should invest your funds.
Of course, determining where you will invest begins with researching the various available types of investments, determining your risk tolerance, and determining your investment style – along with your financial goals.
If you were going to purchase a new car, you would do a lot of research before making a final decision and purchase. You would never consider purchasing a car you had not fully looked over and taken for a test drive. Investing works much the same way.
You will, of course, learn as much about the investment as possible and want to see how past investors have done as well. It’s common sense! Some websites that are useful when researching stocks are Yahoo Finance and Morningstar.
Learning about the stock market and investments takes much time… but is well spent. There are numerous books and websites on the topic, and you can even take college-level courses on the topic – which is what stockbrokers do. With access to the Internet, you can play the stock market – with fake money – to get a feel for how it works.
You can make pretend investments and see how they do. Search with any search engine for ‘Stock Market Games’ or ‘Stock Market Simulations.’ This is a great way to start learning about investing in the stock market.
Outside the stock market, other investments do not have simulators. You must learn about those types of investments the hard way – by reading.
As a potential investor, you should read anything you can get your hands on about investing…but start with the beginning investment books and websites first. Otherwise, you will quickly find that you are lost. I have written several books on financial topics, one dealing with How the Stock Market Operates.
Finally, speak with a financial planner. Tell them your goals and ask them for their suggestions – this is what they do! A good financial planner can easily help you determine where to invest your funds, and help you set up a plan to reach all of your financial goals. Many will even teach you about investing along the way – pay attention to what they tell you!
If you live in the Nashville metro area, please get in touch with me directly for assistance. And for those outside the middle Tennessee area, seek a qualified fee-only Registered Financial Consultant (RFC) near you.
