Not a Clue How to Invest? Follow Your Heart…

Zoy Koy asked:


When you hear the word “invest,” it’s probably in a Charles Schwab commercial while you’re flipping through tv channels , somewhere in between Animal Planet and Grey’s Anatomy. If you’re like me, susceptible to frequent family visits, perhaps you get the same old lecture from Uncle Hank time and time again… “You’re investing in that IRA/401k)/stock portfolio, aren’t you kid?”

We all know we should be investing our hard-earned money for our futures, but how do we go from not knowing where to start to watching our invested dollars grow? Some questions that might run through your mind are: What should I invest in? What sort of funds should I look into? Do I want to take risks, or am I more conservative? These questions are not the most tantalizing topic in the world, but let’s say we make them that way for just a moment!

I propose we start with what we know and love. Start with what makes us interested and excited. Imagine for a moment, that instead of getting lost in the bottomless pit of mutual funds, stocks, bonds, ticker symbols – all that mumbo jumbo – pretend that we can invest in anything we want. Yup, anything! Your favorite movie star, cartoon character, NBA player or band. For example, let’s say we have $100 to start investing with. Hey, every dollar counts and no matter how old you are, I bet you can scrape up $100 to put toward your financial future!

With our $100, let’s invest $25 into the fund of “Scarlett Johansson” (favorite actress), $25 into the fund of “Spongebob” (favorite cartoon character), $25 into the fund of “Monta Ellis” (favorite NBA star – Go Warriors!) and lastly, $25 into the fund of “Coldplay” (favorite band).

There. The hard part’s over. We’ve chosen our funds, now we sit back and watch our “funds” mature. Imagine this – every time the beautiful Scarlett makes a blocbuster and people buy tickets to see it, CHA-CHING! Money in your pocket. Every time Monta Ellis shoots a 3-pointer, look out, CHA-CHING again! What’s that, Spongebob’s on, the episode where he visits his grandma and takes Patrick the starfish with him? CHA-CHING baby! Driving in your car and happen to catch Coldplay on the radio? Score, more money in your pocket!

The idea is, if you’re clueless on how to start investing, why not put your money where your interests are? Do you like drinking soda? Do you enjoy playing video games? Are you into scuba diving? Hey, throw some money into some beverage stock, invest a little in your favorite video game company, or maybe your favorite scuba diving gear brand? Totally random subjects, but the moral of this story is that no matter what you love, no matter what your hobbies are, I bet you can find something that you are knowledgeable about and interested in. And when you are passionate about something enough to follow it, you can bet that it will be that much more fun to invest your money in too.

-this is your #8 FM Popp(News) Agent ZoyKoy