How Much Do You Need to Get Started Investing?

$1 or $1000? All your questions answered and more

How much money do you need to invest? How much money should you invest?

There’s no right or wrong answer, and this is why many people give up. But the stock market is a different animal today.

It’s actually the easiest it's ever been to invest. You could start investing in the stock market with as little as $5 thanks to zero-fee brokerages (e.g. Webull and Robinhood) and the magic of fractional shares (buying a portion of an entire stock).

Since the stock market, on average, returns 8% annually, your money will do much better than a traditional savings account. Moreover, fellow writer Cody Collins wrote about how you should expect more than an 8% return from the market.

However, I’d say a good place to start is anywhere between $100 and $1000. It’s even possible to double your money if you put it in the right places.

This is how I would invest $1000 [aggressively]

20% in an ARK ETF

One of my favorite Medium writers Silver Berry introduced ARK’s series of ETFs to me, and it’s since become is my favorite exchange-traded fund to invest in.

Here are ARK’s five active ETFs with some of their holdings:

• ARK Innovation [Tesla, Roku, and Teladoc Health]
• ARKQ Autonomous Technology & Robotics [Tesla and Alphabet]
• ARKW Next Generation Internet [Grayscale BTC Trust and Square Inc.]
• ARKG Genomic Revolution[Teladoc Health and Pacific BioSciences]
• ARKF Fintech Revolution [Zillow, Square, Pinterest]

For a small investment you get access to several of the best-performing stocks in recent years. It’s a steal at the average price of $100-$156.

40% in Cryptocurrency or Crypto-based Stocks

A large portion of my portfolio is in cryptocurrency.

Money has historically changed every 20-30 years, and I think Bitcoin stands to be the greatest change ever. I don’t just own Bitcoin, however, I also own Ethereum, Litecoin, and shares of cryptocurrency mining groups Riot Blockchain and Marathon Patent Group.

Those last two stocks have quadrupled my earnings since I first started investing in them.

Cryptocurrency is an extremely volatile stock, so I’d recommend not investing everything into it. Don’t mortgage your house for Bitcoin. Heed this old Wall Street warning:

“Bulls make money, bears make money, pigs get slaughtered.”

Pigs, or people who get greedy always lose.

20% in Computer Hardware

Everything is a computer in 2021.

Your phone, tablet, and even your refrigerator is a smart device capable of doing what was once impossible things.

All this amazing technology takes parts to work. That’s why I’m currently obsessed with computing hardware stocks like AMD, Intel, Nvidia, and Logitech.

These companies aren’t going away anytime soon which makes them superb investments.

1% in Ice Cream

Investing is stressful.

Take a breather and treat yo self.

10% in Psychedelics

“Magic mushrooms and LSD are being listed on the Nasdaq, the series premiere of HBO’s “Billions” opened with Bobby Axelrod drinking ayahuasca, and the real-life billionaire and hedge fund manager Steve Cohen just donated to a charity developing MDMA for military veterans.”

Kevin O’Leary wrote that.

I’ve been a bit obsessed with his advice lately and he thinks psychedelics are going to be the next big drug to be legalized to fight mental health problems.

Psychedelics are a simple solution to a big problem. It’s what makes them a great investment. Even the FDA is doing clinical trials with Compass Pathways, MindMed, and ATAI as the leading companies (All on the stock exchange by the way).

The first person to discover LSD, Albert Hoffman said on his death bed that he hoped his “problem child could become a wonderchild.” In our lifetime I think we will soon see what Hoffman’s discovery becomes.

9% in BlackBerry

Your last $100 should be a stock of your choice. Do your own research, find a company that you can trust and is worthy of your investment.

For me, BlackBerry is that company.

BlackBerry is a software company now. They’re signing new deals with tech companies every day and the latest was with Amazon. BlackBerry’s software IVY, is a scalable cloud-connected software platform designed for intelligent vehicle data gathering and data sharing. I think BlackBerry is fundamentally more valuable than its current price.

John S. Chen, CEO of BlackBerry since 2013 knows where the future is headed. I trust his company with my money.

Now the question is, who do you trust with yours?

This article is for informational purposes only. It should not be considered Financial or Legal Advice. Consult a financial professional before making any major financial decisions.

Check out my new book “Mind and Muscle” now on Amazon.