Oh ok. Yes, I'm looking to start investing. I've been reading what I can but with all these sites on googles, it's a bit overwhelming. I was thinking of getting my feet wet by putting $5k towards a mutual fund and another $5k into stocks. Am I starting off on the wrong foot with that?
It's never a bad time to start, though I tend to prefer index funds over mutual funds due to fees. SPY is a good place to start.
As for investing - I really think you can start at any time, but you may lose money at first if you don't do sufficient research. But, in reality, I think most people can do a nice job picking stocks once you have the right mindset and knowledge. Plus, it's fun being in control of your finances.
I'm not sure what your background is, but as a novice, you should read the following books:
You Can Be a Stock Market Genius - Joel Greenblatt
One Up on Wall Street - Peter Lynch
Snowball: Warren Buffett - Alice Schroeder
The Five Rules for Successful Stock Investing: Morningstar's Guide to Building Wealth and Winning in the Market - Pat Dorsey
Common Stocks and Uncommon Profits - Phillip Fischer
Then you can graduate to some more technical stuff:
Benjamin Graham
Dhando Investing
Fooling Some of the People All of the Time
It is a large reading list, but investing is super competitive and requires hard work. I've been investing for about 7 years, and I learn new things every day and occasionally make mistakes. I've also worked in the investment field for a few years, but I found these books taught me far more than my employers ever did.
Feel free to PM me with any questions.
