Jamie Smith's  Instablog

When someone is playing poker, if they fold, what chance do they have of winning? 0%. You could have the best investment idea out there, but you miss out because you are sitting on the sidelines.

I am not saying that you should always be fully invested in the stock market, but you should have something invested. If you are not in, you can't win. Get started by opening an account. There are lots of discount brokers you can use. Just look at the ad bar of any financial website. Most discount brokers allow you to trade for less than $10 per trade and with a small account minimum. Do a little research on brokers. It will be worth the time. I was able to find real-time trades for $3, and a $500 minimum and no annual fee. You can do it too. I also saved the money to open the account by setting a little aside in a short period of time.

What is the worst that can happen? You set up an account and let the money sit until you get the guts to make a trade. You will be happy that you did.

The best time to invest is now! Do you realize that the longer you wait, the more opportunities that you miss? It is the rule of compounding. The longer you hold an investment, the better chance you have of making money.

Here is an example: Let's say you open an account today at the minimum balance of $500 and gain 10% for 10 years, and deposit $50 per month. Your account balance in 10 years would be $11,681. If you waited 5 years, and deposited $100 per month (same amount invested), your account balance would be $8630. That is a difference of $3051, or 27% difference!

Get in the game early to maximize your investment money!