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So you've got $100!

Do you want to begin investing for your future, including retirement?

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You won't build wealth by keeping your extra cash under your mattress and hoping for the best. You need to invest your money strategically!

What Is Your Investment Style?

Do:

  • Decide if you need easy access to your money

  • Decide how much risk you're comfortable with taking

  • Set up a rainy day fund for emergency car repairs, bills, and other unexpected expenses

Don't:

  • Forget to research a variety of investment options

  • Forget to consider your employer's retirement plan (if available)

  • Forget to decide on your investment timeline

  • Fall for get rich quick scams

A kitten clawing at someone trying to take his money.

Quiz

You have $100 to invest but don't know anything about investing and don't want to lose your money. What should you do?

Know Your Investment Options

Bernie Sanders saying I am once again asking that you invest in your future.

  1. Invest in a mutual fund

    A mutual fund pools money from many investors and invests it in stocks, bonds, and short-term debt. Risk level is medium to low.

  1. Invest in fractional shares

    Fractional shares are a “fraction” or “slice” of an individual stock. It lets you use $100 to buy stocks you couldn’t otherwise afford. You can also diversify your $100 investment across many different stocks. Risk level varies.

  1. Invest in yourself: enroll in a course or certification 

    Online platforms like HarvardX and LinkedIn Learning let you purchase online courses and certifications to gain skills in your professional lifeto help you get a promotion at your current job, or maybe drop your 9-to-5 and begin working in a brand new field.

  1. Open a Roth IRA

    A Roth IRA (Individual Retirement Account) is a retirement account you can open in addition to other accounts you have like a workplace 401(k). This type of retirement account lets you invest with after-tax dollars, and your money grows tax-free until you're ready to access it.

  1. Open a high yield savings account

    If you have $100 to your name but you don’t have any extra cash for emergency expenses, your best bet for now is saving that money. However, you can easily earn a better rate of return with a high-yield savings account from an online bank. 

Did you know?

A few people may stumble into financial security. But for most people, the only way to attain financial security is to save and invest over a long period of time. You just need to have your money work for you. That’s investing!

Tools To Help You Plan And Monitor Your Investments

Do:

  • Download investment apps to your phone

  • Decide how you want to receive statements (email or paper)

  • Decide how you'll grow your investment account in the long-term

  • Pay attention to account fees

Don't:

  • Cash in your investment unless you really need the money

  • Forget to track your investments

  • Forget about online toolsto help you manage your investments

  • Sell or cash in your account when the investment market fluctuates

Man saying I'm in the investment game baby!

Did you know?

There is a great deal of information about investing such as where to begin, types of investments and more. Simply Google 'Investing 101' or checkout a government financial regulatory agency such as FINR for more information: https://www.finra.org/investors/learn-to-invest/young-adults-and-investing

Take Action

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License:

This Byte has been authored by

MH

Mary Hoftiezer

Instructional Designer

MBA

English

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