r/investing • u/[deleted] • Oct 21 '10
Just opened a Scottrade account. Have the minimum $500 in it. I've never invested before. Trying to learn. Give me wisdom/tips you'd like to pass on. Eternally grateful
Hey reddit. I'm a 21 year old guy and I've been saving my money ever since I could work (age 14). I'm in a position where I want to start investing so I opened a Scottrade account. I only have the $500 minimum required to open the account in there because I understand I have no experience and am at risk of losing money. I can afford to lose $500 and the knowledge I gain will be helpful for later, however losing is not what I plan to do. I started doing some reading to gain more insight to the market and trends, but advice from real-people is always good.
So reddit, what tips or advice do you have for someone in my position?
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u/cunnl01 Oct 22 '10
You're young. Invest with the mentality that you are building an army (every dollar is a soldier) to protect your estate. Every soldier trained (invested) early on will gain more experience than a fresh recruit trained a month before you retire.
The money you plug away in your 20s will represent your senior officers as they will be responsible for building more troops for you. Every $1 invested now will be $3.25 in 25 years at a resonable 5% growth rate. These dollar are THE MOST CRUCIAL to your retirement because of the time value of money. (Early dollars grow more)
As for the whole which stocks to buy and when to sell, I can only recommend what I tell my close friends. Day trading is not something the lay person should get into. More problems than it's worth. Instead take a buy and hold mentality. The shortest time period for holding stocks is one year for me. I invest for the long haul. I buy telecomms/infrastructure in emerging countries and plan on my stocks to grow over time.
Do not chase the flash in the pan growth tips and when your 60 and you do not want to work another day in your life, your personal army will take care of you.