How I Started My Investing Journey

Investing was the dream of my generation. If you are reading this now, you probably reached the same point where I once stood — the fear of starting and searching the internet for something that encourages you to begin. Here is my real story and how I started.

My Situation Before Starting

At the beginning, I was looking for something I could do from my phone without hassle or heavy effort. Honestly, I wanted something online and simple. Because of that, I decided to start by learning first.

The Ability to Save Money First

As I mentioned in my previous posts, you must be able to save money before investing. In other words, you must have money remaining at the end of each month. This remaining money is what allows you to invest without financial pressure.

Starting to Learn

After deciding to start, I used my daily driving time to work to search online for resources that could help me understand investing and where to begin. I learned there are two main types of investors:

Investor Type	Description	Risk Level	Goal
Short-Term Investor	Buys and sells assets quickly to make fast profits	High	Quick returns
Long-Term Investor	Holds investments for years to build steady growth	Lower	Long-term wealth building

Based on my goals, I decided to become a long-term investor. Then I narrowed my research to that direction and found several YouTube channels that helped me understand investing better.

Channel links:

• https://youtube.com/@jenniferamthomson
• https://youtube.com/@humphrey

The Push That Made Me Start

One of the best pieces of advice I heard — and I pass to you — is that fear of starting is completely normal. And $10 is something most people can afford to risk as a start.

This is exactly what happened with me. I started by investing just $10 in an S&P 500 ETF. During the first days, I was opening the app every minute to see what was happening to my money. When the market opened, I started seeing my money value change, which pushed me to read more about stocks and ETFs.

Then I started choosing the stocks and ETFs I wanted to invest in, and since 2022, I have been depositing monthly and buying consistently.

The Biggest Lesson

Starting does not require huge capital. It requires the decision to begin, continuous learning, and consistency — even with small amounts.

Have you started investing already? Share your experience in the comments.