Guest Author:
Impromptu Inspirational Hallway Conversation
I met Dr. Hans in the hallway outside a session I was late to at Fincon. He was wearing a traditional Ghanian shirt and I had to stop and talk to him. We had a great discussion for 10 minutes starting with our mutual affinity for Africa.
Mostly we talked about the dynamics of family and money. We discussed how sometimes family dynamics or pressure to share wealth earned with family members can cause problems or conflict.
I was so excited about Dr. Hans’ energy and excitement about sharing information about how to invest that I had to invite him to be part of Financial Wellness week.
When people think of the stock market, they imagine a screen with flashing red and green numbers. Most individuals simply don’t understand how the stock market works.
You can find Dr. Hans on his very active Instagram account @theinvestingtutor where he shares inspirational finance content with a minority and spiritual wellness twist. You can also find the Investing Tutor podcast on Spotify. You can also book a free 15 minute coaching session.
Here’s Dr. Hans to tell you more about how to start investing, even if you don’t have a lot of money to begin.
How to Build Generational Wealth
The stock market is simply a measure of the economy.
The stock market grows when the economy is growing. The stock market declines when the economy weakens. This means the U.S. stock market simply tracks the performance of public U.S. companies.
Most people believe the stock market can crash and go to zero.
That is close to impossible.
For the stock market to go to zero (and investors lose all of their money), it means ALL public companies will have to shut down.
Can you imagine a world without — Apple, Google, Microsoft, Walmart, Disney, Bank of America, J.P. Morgan, Lowe’s, Home Depot, Visa, MasterCard and 3,500 other U.S. public companies? (I can’t imagine a world without them either)
If you believe all U.S. public companies can’t shut down, then it means you realize the stock market can’t go to zero. (Great job!)
Once I understood this, it changed my life because, for the first time, I finally realized how the stock market works. It isn’t as risky as people think. It is simply a measure of the economy.
This means you should be excited to start investing! If you love watching Netflix, invest in Netflix stock. If you utilize Amazon Prime, invest in Amazon. If you plan on purchasing Disney+ for your kids, invest in Disney stock. If you own an iPhone, why don’t you own Apple stock? The secret is to invest in companies that you love and understand.
Before the internet existed, if you wanted to buy stocks, you needed to have a stockbroker. Most minorities didn’t have access to a stockbroker; this meant they were secluded from having access to the stock market.
Today, if you have a few dollars, you can download an investment app and get access to the same investments that are available to stockbrokers.
Despite everyone having access to investment apps, many individuals don’t know how to invest, and that’s why I created The Investing Tutor.
Today, I’m going to show you how to open an investment brokerage account and purchase your first stock!
Download an investment app, preferably Stash or Stockpile.
- Fund it with $50.
- Identify the stocks you want to buy.
- Keep purchasing stocks.
How to know if a stock is a GOOD stock? Answer these questions:
- Do you love the company?
- Do you understand how the company makes money?
- Is the company growing?
- Do you believe they will be around in 20 years?
If you answered yes to all four of these questions, there’s a high likelihood the company is a GOOD investment.
I hope this article inspires you and provides the basics you need to start investing. I wish you the very best as you build generational wealth for yourself and your family.
Thank You!
Thank you Dr. Hans for sharing your thoughts on investing. If you visit Dr. Hans on Instagram (@theinvestingtutor), you will find a lot of spiritual and financial wellness content. One unique perspective of The Investing Tutor is content geared towards making finance more accessible to minorities and people of color.
Guest Author Bio
Dr. Hans Boateng has an MBA from William and Mary and a Doctor of Pharmacy degree from Wegmans School of Pharmacy.
He studied chemical compounds, molecular structures, stereochemistry, polymerization so he was not intimidated by masteringpersonal finance and investing. His goalis to provide genuine, non-biased and transparent financial education.
Note: This article is for educational purposes and should not be considered financial advice.
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