I look at it like this: Most professional money managers can’t beat the S&P 500 on a consistent basis. So if they have a hard time doing it with all the resources they have, then it would be even harder for me.

But if you absolutely want to invest in individual stocks, I would start with small amounts of money that you don’t need for at least 10 years. Don’t put all your money into individual stocks at one time.

Another option is to just practice by researching stocks, find some, but don’t buy them. That way, you can “play around” with them without risking your money. Follow them for a year, and see if you’re comfortable with all the ups and downs. If you are, then consider putting in real money.

Since you have The Intelligent Investor, if you really want to dig deeper into investing, Security Analysis is another book by Benjamin Graham. Warren Buffett has good things to say about this book too. It’s a thick and pretty complex book though. I have it, but haven’t finished it yet.

Either way, I would focus on paying off debt first, as you’re already doing. Good luck!

Read a few by Peter Lynch and a couple others.

But I was still in school and was accumulating debt rather than building up money to invest with.

At what point in your life would you recommend starting to invest in stocks? One of my friends seems to be doing well, he also has a bit more to invest with.

I figure I’ll pay off my student loans within maybe year and a half. The interest rate on them is about 5%. I kind of figured that the interest + inflation is about the return that I would earn on stocks if I was doing reasonably well. I also thought that it could be good to play around with stocks so I learn more about them beyond what I have read in books. That book you reviewed seems useful.

What are your thoughts?

I got Kiyosaki’s board games a little while ago, they’re fun and do a pretty good job of teaching about finances and in ’202′ about puts, calls, shortselling, etc.

-Neal

This book is not as deep in content as it is in motivation. I know about his other books, but don’t have the interest to read them at this point.

As far as recommending more advanced books, I’m honored that you asked. Here are a few good ones.

The Intelligent Investor – This was written by the guy who taught Warren Buffett.

The Little Book of Common Sense Investing – This book simplifies investing down to a basic yet profitable way. You can also read my review of it first.

These two should get you grounded with a solid foundation of financial knowledge. Let me know if you have any other questions. Hope it helps!

I read this book and a few others in the series. It seems like they are a good thing for people who are unfamiliar with finances as I was a few years back.

One of my friends read the book and all the stories annoyed him, since Kiyosaki makes a number of points several times.

The first book is the beginning of the main three books that come as a package sometimes. The next is on cashflow and the third is on investing. His emphasis is on real estate, which will be more useful to some people.

There are also an abundance of books under the ‘rich dad’ label. I liked some of them more than others…..

Since finance isn’t taught in schools, the books seem like a good start.

What would you recommend for the next steps beyond this level?