Stock Markets Exposed

What is a good way to make money off of investing?

Im just starting out, and im trying to figure out WHAT to invest in and how long it will take before I see a profit.

Public Comments

1. Invest in mutual funds.
2. Investing in "individual" stocks takes a lot of knowledge and practice; so I would not suggest doing this until you understand completely how the stock markets work. Instead visit Vanguard.com and learn about mutual funds, index funds, and exchange-traded-funds (ETFs). Trading funds is less risky than trying to trade "individual" stocks. If I was starting over again, I would find (4) ETFs that have had consistent returns with strong chart uptrends, and simply invest my money evenly over the (4) funds. Profits can come the same day or never in the stock market. It depends on how much time you put into learning what you need to know.
3. A while ago I asked a similar question "Playing the Market; things to know?" My belief is that in order to invest it is essential to understand the basics. Here is what I took as the best post. Some posters also mentioned using fictitious money to play the market before using the real stuff. Here was the post I thought was great. Best Answer - Chosen By You I have read Buffetology and would not recomend this book as a means of getting usefull information. I am by the way a Buffet fan and read the book before going to a Berkshire Annual meeting, can't wait for the next one only a couple of weeks away. The Buffet Way is a much better book to read. I don't know what you mean by getting in more deeply but if you really want to go in deep read "Investment Analysis" by Graham and Dodd this is considered manadatory reading at my firm and is considered the best book for investment analysts. We keep several copies in our office for referance. The 1951 edition is considered the best by most people. It is very heavy reading though. Bengamin Graham by the way was the person who mentored Buffet. I really hope you get some of the same people to respond to your question. Best of luck to you.
4. AS others have stated you require a good degree of investment knowledge if you are going to invest on your own. A little knowledge IS a dengerous thing when it comes to investing, you will get burnt. Try to learn form other peoples mistakes as learning from your own can be very costly. Having said that, there are many good books and investment products to learn from. Each investor needs to find out what works for them. How you cope with risk. Can you trade without emotion? For people with little or no knowledge the common answer is to invest in Mutual Funds. Have you read fool.com's article on What's wrong with mutual funds? I like to follow a system that is very easy to use, easy to understand, and where I can make the descisions and keep control of my investments. There are many such systems out there. The one I like best is StocksMonthly's system. You buy and sell selected stocks every month and stockmonthly tell you which stocks satisy their particular system criteria.
5. Open a brokerage account at Zecco and invest in the ETF DIA.
6. It depends on what time frame you are wanting to see a return as there are so many different investments available. You also need to look at how much risk you are willing to take on as if you are wanting income now then the risk factor goes up. If you can wait and add money to your investment account then over time you can build a solid nest egg. If you have any more questions write billone44@yahoo.com and I will answer them for you , also I am an active investor in RE and Forex good luck