Where to start?

[rowes]

I would change this to:

Invest what you can afford to.

I gamble with what I can afford to lose, but I expect a return on an investment or, at the vey least, to retain most of my capital, so a different mindset is required.

I agree also

3) Invest what you can afford to lose, majority of people will lose the majority of their money initially.

I know this happens a fair bit of the time but you can increase your chances of this not happening by being as best educated as you can and having the correct mindset for investing/trading. There are some great books mentioned all over the ASF website that can help you out.
Just cause most lose there money in the first year doesnt mean you have to take that path too. Happy reading to you

 

[ceasar73]

Sorry, Ceasar73, but I disagree with this. Passion and inexperience are a dangerous combination. You will get far further with an unemotional approach. Passion and emotion preclude objectivity.

Hi Julia, this comes as a suprise to me? I would have thought that the greatest traders had a real passion for it. You telling buffet/lynch etc dont love what they do?

 

[professor_frink]

Hi Julia , this comes as a suprise to me? I would have thought that the greatest traders had a real passion for it. You telling buffet/lynch etc dont love what they do?

There's a balance that needs to be found ceasar. Obviously, everyone that posts on this forum and invests there money actively must have some kind of passion for it, otherwise they'd have their money in managed funds! I think Julia is trying to ensure you don't get too emotionally involved in what you are doing. There is nothing more dangerous than having a lot of money riding on a particular decision, and also being emotionally attached to the outcome. Being passionate about it is great, being too emotionally involved in any one position can be financial suicide.

 

[ceasar73]

There's a balance that needs to be found ceasar. Obviously, everyone that posts on this forum and invests there money actively must have some kind of passion for it, otherwise they'd have their money in managed funds! I think Julia is trying to ensure you don't get too emotionally involved in what you are doing. There is nothing more dangerous than having a lot of money riding on a particular decision, and also being emotionally attached to the outcome. Being passionate about it is great, being too emotionally involved in any one position can be financial suicide.

aha..you guys are saying I need to have control of my emotions in this game.

Im loving this info!

thanks guys.

 

[Julia]

Hi Julia, this comes as a suprise to me? I would have thought that the greatest traders had a real passion for it. You telling buffet/lynch etc dont love what they do?

Hi Ceasar,

Note that I referred to the combination of passion and inexperience.
Buffet and Lynch could not be described as inexperienced obviously.

Professor Frink has accurately summed up what I was trying to say.

I remember a post from an ASF member recently (sorry I can't recall who it was) who said he felt bad when taking profits as this meant someone else was losing. That's looking at the business of the market in an emotional sense and will screw up your capacity to make objective decisions.
Instead, if I needed to find a reason for taking profits (which I absolutely don't) I'd suggest my selling those shares gave someone else an opportunity to buy something they wanted.

And I'm not at all sure that passion is a characteristic required to be successful as an investor or a trader. I find investing interesting and financially rewarding, but I would not say I'm passionate about it.

Hope that clarifies what I was suggesting.

 

[ceasar73]

Hi Ceasar,

Note that I referred to the combination of passion and inexperience.
Buffet and Lynch could not be described as inexperienced obviously.

Professor Frink has accurately summed up what I was trying to say.

I remember a post from an ASF member recently (sorry I can't recall who it was) who said he felt bad when taking profits as this meant someone else was losing. That's looking at the business of the market in an emotional sense and will screw up your capacity to make objective decisions.
Instead, if I needed to find a reason for taking profits (which I absolutely don't) I'd suggest my selling those shares gave someone else an opportunity to buy something they wanted.

And I'm not at all sure that passion is a characteristic required to be successful as an investor or a trader. I find investing interesting and financially rewarding, but I would not say I'm passionate about it.

Hope that clarifies what I was suggesting.

Point taken julia, thanks.

Im a super emotional person, I could be in trouble.

One things for sure, I would not feel bad taking profits at anothers expense.

 

[professor_frink]

Im a super emotional person, I could be in trouble.

maybe, maybe not. All depends on how self aware you are. If you can recognise that you can get pretty emotional about certain things, you'll need a pretty rigid plan to ensure you can keep it all in check. If you can keep the enthusiasm out of the actual buying and selling decisions and channel it into your research, then you should be fine

 

[sdfsdfe]

Where to start

Alright. I am an utter beginner, so I'm out for any information I can get at the moment.

One question I have for the moment: I've just joined Etrade and the "Online Account Application Form" I've printed requests submission my "Nominated Financial Institution statement". I'm guessing this will be my bank statement. Now... Do they need the full statement with my transactions or can I just send them the header of the statement with my bank details?

Once this is out of the way, can anyone suggest how I learn a bit more using Etrade? When should I begin investing - is there a training ground?

 

[surfingman]

Re: Where to start

I can suggest my 2 favourite free spots for learning:

http://www.aussiestockforums.com
http://www.asx.com.au/investor/education/index.htm

Etrade:
Theres a Tools & Education tab once you login, that should tell you most things you need to know about the software.

 

[Sean K]

Re: Where to start

Always helps to call the company for help too.

 

[marklar]

Re: Where to start

Start reading! Seriously, there are plenty of resources around from websites like ASX and ASF, books, newspapers like the Fin Review. Pick some stocks to watch and research, read prospectus documents, financial reports, industry sector publications, etc.

m.

 

[tayser]

Re: Where to start

You did what I did - signed up with a broker before buying/reading a single book

One of your tasks will be this: to see how well you can restrain yourself from committing money to things as you learn them... I'm roughly 6 months into my journey and am yet to commit ca$h (read below) - not far from doing so - but showing restraint has been one of the hardest things to do.

I suppose it's a key lesson in Money Management - don't do what I did, that being doing two trades so I didn't have to pay the $19 to keep the live info running (I did two, made a nice little $50 profit, then I immediately thought: "Oh this is easy, I'll just keep going, buggar the education process! (the next trade resulted in a $150 loss - very valuable lesson learned there but my money's been paying of the last of my residual CC debt and now getting directed into an ING until I deem myself ready to make my first 'real' trade)) - just leave $20-30 in the E*Trade Cash management account as you learn and so as you don't do anything foolish whilst doing so.

$0.02

 

[sdfsdfe]

Re: Where to start

Tayser:

Glad to hear! I'm not yet going to put anything down, but I thought I may as well try to get used to the system if at all possible.

Basically I've got $20K sitting in a St George account getting 4.1% interest. Now I've not been very attentive up until now, but I think it's about time. Does anyone have any suggestions as to where I should invest the money and in what sort of ratio? How much should I leave aside for trading later on and where else can I get a nice interest rate to store the rest?

Also, does anyone have an answer for the bank statement question? Do I need to send them a full bank statement or will the heading suffice?

 

[Pat]

Re: Where to start

Alright. I am an utter beginner, so I'm out for any information I can get at the moment.

One question I have for the moment: I've just joined Etrade and the "Online Account Application Form" I've printed requests submission my "Nominated Financial Institution statement". I'm guessing this will be my bank statement. Now... Do they need the full statement with my transactions or can I just send them the header of the statement with my bank details?

Once this is out of the way, can anyone suggest how I learn a bit more using Etrade? When should I begin investing - is there a training ground?

You did what I did - signed up with a broker before buying/reading a single book

Same here LOL! But didn't trade anthing for 2 months, while I watched, read... learned.
ASF is the best place to start learning how to learn about the market thats for sure.
I still don't understand the market... I swear it's female.

 

[questionall_42]

Re: Where to start

Missinglink,

Dedicate some quality time to trawling through ASF. Some gold on this site. Best approach is to have a nice bottle of wine or an icy ale and kick-back and enjoy. Just soak it up. Shame it wasn't around when I started playing this game.

I have found the Saturday Age/SMH useful; particularly the commentaries from the likes Ross Gittins, Marcus Padley, Bartho, Alan Kohler (who has now left) and Malcom Maiden - not that what they say is gospel, but it is important to see how intelligent people view investment from different perspectives.

But most importantly, if you are lucky enough to know people who are happy to talk (in the flesh, in person) with you about investments, in an honest way, that is the ultimate. I have probably learnt most from these interactions and have great relationships for learning and discussing investment ideas.

Best of luck, and don't be shy to ask.

 

[Pat]

Re: Where to start

Tayser:

Glad to hear! I'm not yet going to put anything down, but I thought I may as well try to get used to the system if at all possible.

Basically I've got $20K sitting in a St George account getting 4.1% interest. Now I've not been very attentive up until now, but I think it's about time. Does anyone have any suggestions as to where I should invest the money and in what sort of ratio? How much should I leave aside for trading later on and where else can I get a nice interest rate to store the rest?

Also, does anyone have an answer for the bank statement question? Do I need to send them a full bank statement or will the heading suffice?

Not too sure bout the statement, However you should be able to "blank out" the transactions on the statement and send it through like that. I guess E-trade want conformation of your account.

 

[nioka]

Re: Where to start

Tayser:

Glad to hear! I'm not yet going to put anything down, but I thought I may as well try to get used to the system if at all possible.

Basically I've got $20K sitting in a St George account getting 4.1% interest. Now I've not been very attentive up until now, but I think it's about time. Does anyone have any suggestions as to where I should invest the money and in what sort of ratio? How much should I leave aside for trading later on and where else can I get a nice interest rate to store the rest?

Also, does anyone have an answer for the bank statement question? Do I need to send them a full bank statement or will the heading suffice?

Why not trade through St George bank or any of the other bank for that matter until you get to understand the system. The bank online trading can give help if you need it. St George, I have heard, require funds to be in the account before trading, .I trade with westpac and only have to have funds available at settlement time.

 

[Chef]

Re: Where to start

Does anyone have any suggestions as to where I should invest the money

Hi sdfsdfe.

What do you do for a living? What is your industry?

What are you interests?

The reason I ask is, I personally feel that when it comes to investing (at least initially), you should put your money in something you know and are familiar with.

If you are a complete beginner, I wouldn't recommend worrying about trading just yet. You should research companies that you understand and invest your money in something you feel comfortable with.

I work in the hospitality industry. When I first started out, I focused on companies that were mainly concerned with food and beverage. The first shares I ever bought were Fosters shares. I know Fosters, I deal with them all the time. I understand the market that they are involved in.

Anyway, I guess what I am trying to say is, if you are stuck and aren't too sure where to start, search for what you know. There are hundreds of publicly listed companies in dozens of sectors. It easier to find companies to invest in when you know and understand their business.

Dave

 

[Chef]

Re: Where to start

PS

Hi all!

 

[sdfsdfe]

Re: Where to start

Does anyone have any suggestions as to where I should invest the money

What do you do for a living? What is your industry?

What are you interests?


Dave

Sorry for the late response!! My professional background is mostly in the web field. Interests are health, food & environment - not too much money there I'd imagine!