Get Into Investing!: Learn a simple strategy for investing in stocks, using only your smartphone.

By William F. Seeds

These days most people have a smart phone. There are dozens of books on investing, but only this book is all about buying and selling stocks with today's sophisticated technology that we all carry in our pockets every day. Author Will Seeds introduces readers to an investment strategy that took him fifteen years to perfect. He uses easy terms to

• Language: English
• Publisher: Palmetto Publishing
• Release date: Mar 17, 2021
• ISBN: 9781649906106

William F. Seeds

William F. Seeds began his journey as a storyteller in his mid-forties, proving that passion knows no timeline. From guiding novices in Get into Investing to exploring the sinister in Tattoo Voodoo, William has showcased a vast narrative range. Nano Ops, his latest saga, delves into the adventurous world of drone pilots and high-tech espionage. When he's not penning gripping tales, William is sharing updates on his personal website and gearing up for his next thrilling venture.

Book preview

CHAPTER 1

INVESTING ON YOUR SMARTPHONE

Thank you for picking up this information to learn more about investing and how it can grow into a retirement account or savings for that rainy day. The US stock market has been around since the 1860s, with some history even going back into the late 1700s.(1) Although the United States was not the first country to develop an exchange for securities, today the world is connected to other stock markets, and issues in other countries can heavily impact the United States and others, such as Japan and the European Union (EU).

With today’s standards of education, housing costs, and lack of savings, it’s hard to see how a single household income can sustain a normal living standard and grow for the future. If you are reviewing this subject in your forties, you should already have three to four times your annual salary saved in a retirement account.(2) Usually by this time, you’ve started some sort of plan, but maybe not enough. If you are younger or do not practice financial planning, this material will hopefully get you started in saving for retirement—or at least for an occasional nice vacation.

Before you get too deep into the content, it is important that you connect your checking account to an online brokerage account that is funded with a small percentage from your paycheck every payday. I share images of the Apple iPhone Stocks application and Samsung’s Webull application (similar functionality) throughout this writing. The writing will use simple terms at the start then some math and more advanced terms toward the end.

APPLICATION SELECTION

Select a smartphone app that allows for making a list that’s easy to move around and see company/stock details and news with. Initially, I tried doing it on paper and on the Apple iPhone Notes app, but it really became laborious. I was worried about getting in and out, while losing money and having to explain to my spouse why I’d lost money in her IRA and/or savings accounts. It was a burden, and I missed several opportunities. Over a couple years, I found a wealth of info was at my fingertips the whole time. It helped that technology had advanced a little and unlimited data plans became a thing.

This is the primary reason I only invest on my smartphone. This is not to suggest you cannot build spreadsheets and calculations and have multiple monitors. I have a technical day job, and doing personal business while on the clock is sort of frowned upon. Do not wait to set up those spreadsheets before buying your first stock. I focus on my smartphone for stock news and prices while others are usually playing games or using social media (well, not all the time…). This can be in the lunchroom, watching TV, or waiting for an appointment. You only need a few minutes a day to be semi-successful, but you should have the ability to do it safely and not interfere with that thing that brings in your income.

The things you will be asked to do for homework are all performed within two applications: the smartphone stock app you choose and the app for the brokerage company that you decide to go with. As you are learning, do not overcomplicate the process by taking in too much news or letting it consume your thinking. This should be simple and almost passive, only requiring a few daily habits. As you are looking around for a stock application, make sure you understand how to move the list around and that it doesn’t have a limit on the amount of stocks you can list. It should be free and not require a log in to be used.

Shown here are the two applications that will be discussed throughout this writing, but there are dozens of free ones that will work just fine. Below, see Apple iPhone Stocks app that comes on a standard installation and then the Samsung Webull app that I found has similar functionality.

Apple iPhone Stocks app

Samsung Webull app

START WATCHING THE NIGHTLY NEWS.

When I first started investing in stocks, I was making purchases of one to two shares and didn’t know about upper and lower limits to buy or sell stocks. I made guesses, in other words. After roughly five years, with enough good and bad stories, I started watching Lester Holt on NBC Nightly News. It made decent viewing just after dinner and when I was normally in front of my phone anyway, scrolling social media. I realized at the time that the evening news was a good place to get a head start on putting in a buy or sell order for a stock the next day. If there was a major scientific breakthrough or catastrophic event, it would be on the news. I have to admit that I did start watching other news programs around the 2016 election and especially when the news started reporting on the COVID-19 virus in early 2020.

You only have to keep a pulse on the news; do not let it panic you into buying or selling a security. The same goes for anyone on TV telling you their opinion of a stock. It’s news—maybe with a different flavor, but news all the same. Use these media outlets for new stocks to add to your watch list and then put them to the test. You might find an unexpected love for a stock or find ones to just plain stay away from even though they fit the rules.

CHECKING CONNECTION TO TRADING ACCOUNT

The reason I nag about this is primarily due to laziness. You could call it procrastination, but if it’s not an immediate priority, such as the power bill, you will continue to put it off. Take time now to open the online brokerage account and fund it with twenty dollars after connecting it to your checking account. This will allow easy transfer, but it’s a little harder to get back if you put it all in on one stock.

Automate the donation to the trading savings account from your employer, who can also split off that 1 percent for you. Some employers may even match a percentage of your contributions if you decide to go the IRA route.