Stocks and Investing

Let me start by saying that I’m not a financial advisor or attorney, so please do consult a professional before you invest your own money. This is purely my own feelings on the benefits of investing in stocks.

As an artist, I believe that it is extremely important that put effort into future planning. When I was much younger I met many successful, talented artists who had made a lot of money over the years, but now found themselves with nothing. They had failed to plan adequately for the future. I’m not suggesting that you stop pursuing your dreams to get your 401K in order because art is amazing and the more you can do it and especially if you can sustain it as a career, the more fulfilled you will be, but you do need to consider your long-term future and eventual retirement.

This can take many forms. Perhaps as simple as savings or mutual funds, something you’re comfortable with. As it happens, my bank offers free financial planning which is tremendously helpful and definitely worth looking into to. Depending on what that free service offers, it is also worth looking into a session or two with a paid consultant.

One thing I enjoy is investing in stocks and right now I love the Robin Hood app. It’s a free app for trading  stocks. Some of you will already know this, but I have certain rules for investing in stocks. I usually buy stocks between $20 – $40 and only invest in companies that have been in business for 5 years or more. I do a lot of research before I put my cash into something. Another very important consideration for me is that the business should be a forward thinking one. For example, I am currently investing in a lot of 5G products and businesses as that is the way of the future. Years ago I invested in Netflix. I knew that it was a forward planning company because back then we had Blockbuster and many other similar services but it wasn’t hard to see that streaming services would take a front seat. Over the years I have made a lot of money off of it. I only bought 2 stocks and I think I paid around $50 – $80 in total, but it was a great investment and definitely worth it for what it has brought in off of a relatively small investment.

The most important thing to do is put in the time doing the research.  Of course I’ve also lost money on stocks. In some cases they went out of business and I lost everything, but sometimes the stock just loses money and to sell then isn’t smart. Better to hold onto that stock and hope that it rises again.  In fact, my advice would be that you invest in the stocks and then forget about them. Let them sit out of sight and out of mind. Don’t think of them as money that you can utilize at all and only use money that you would normally spend on coffee or similar expenses for investing so that you’re not breaking your budget for bills.

When you start investing, begin small. You will start to feel more confident when you see your stocks getting better and better.  Also remember that the economy is a living thing in a way. Right now it is going well, but it goes up and down and so itll will do well for a few years and then it will tank and that’s ok, wait it out. I’ve seen the maps and even after the Great Depression, where the recovery took 6  years, the market went up higher than it had been before the crash.

Another useful resource is the  Motley Fool Investment Guide (https://www.amazon.com/Motley-Fool-Investment-Guide-Streets/dp/1501155555/). Investing in stocks can definitely be low risk if you’re paying attention.