10 Great Ways to Learn Stock Trading as a New Investor

New investors taking their first steps towards learning the basics of stock trading should have access to multiple sources of quality education. Just like riding a bike, trial and error coupled with the ability to keep pressing forth will eventually lead to success.

One great advantage of stock trading lies in the fact that the game itself lasts a lifetime. Investors have years to develop and hone their skills. Strategies used twenty years ago are still utilized today. The game is always in full force.

So for new investors wanting to take their first steps, I offer 10 great answers to the simple question, “How do I get started?”

1. Open a Stock Broker Account
Find a good online stock broker and open an account. Become familiarized with the layout and to take advantage of the free trading tools offered to clients only. Some brokers even offer virtual trading which is extremely beneficial because you can trade with play money. You can find a list of brokers that support virtual trading on StockBrokers.com.

2. Read Books
Books provide a wealth of information and are usually inexpensive. Here on the site I have a full list of 20 great stock trading books for investors to consider. My personal all time favorite is How to Make Money in Stocks by William O’Neil, founder of CANSLIM Trading(find more books written by William O’Neil).

3. Read Articles
Articles can serve as a fantastic resource and are usually easy to understand and follow. Our free Stock Education page here on Stock Trading To Go lists over 100 unique investment articles broken down into categories. Everything from ETFs to margin tradingand technical analysis basics are covered. I also recommend checking outinvestopedia.com.

4. Find a Mentor
A mentor could be a family member, a friend, a past or current professor, co-worker, or any individual that has a fundamental understanding of the stock market. A good mentor is willing to answer questions, provide help, recommend useful resources, and keep spirits up when the market gets tough. All successful investors of the past and present have had mentors during their early days.

5. Ask Lots of Questions
Having a place to ask questions and receive answers is a huge asset for any new investor. In school asking questions to a teacher/instructor/professor or leveraging online stock forums there is always someone readily available to help the cause. Some popular stock forums include Elite Trader and Trade2Win.

6. Browse Financial News Sites
News sites such as Yahoo Finance and Google Finance serve as a great resource for new investors. By reading headline stories investors can expose themselves to different stock terms for example. Pulling quotes and observing fundamental data can also serve as another good source of exposure.

7. Consider Paid Subscriptions
Paying for research and analysis can be both educational and useful. Some investors may find watching or observing market professionals to be more beneficial than trying to apply newly learned lessons themselves. There are many paid subscription sites available including Dan Zanger, Investors.com, and Morningstar just to name a few.

8. Watch TV
When the stock market is open CNBC is the #1 source for financial news. Even turning on CNBC for 15 minutes a day will broaden an investors knowledge base. Don’t let the lingo or the style of news be a nuisance, just simply watch and allow the commentators, interviews, and comments to soak in. Note though, over time you may find that a lot of the investing shows on TV are more of a distraction and overall full of crap. This is a natural occurrence; you are not alone!

9. Go to Seminars
Seminars can provide valuable insight into the overall market and specific investment types. Most seminars will focus on one specific aspect of the market and how the speaker has found success utilizing their own strategies over the years. Note all seminars have be paid for either. Some seminars are provided free which can be a beneficial experience, just be conscious of the sales pitch that will almost always come at the end.

10. Sign up for our Free Daily Market Recaps
Join over 17,000 other investors and receive our daily posts via email using the subscribe box below or on the sidebar, or subscribe via a reader. I invite all new investors to make StockTradingToGo a part of their daily investment routine

10 Investing Tips From America’s #1 Billionaire Investo

Warren Buffet is the undisputed king of investing and in his many years of investing, he has dropped many nuggets of investing wisdom aptly named "Buffet-isms"

We countdown the top 10 "Buffet-isms" every investor needs to know in order to make bucketloads of money just like the man himself.

#10. You don't have to be a genius to invest well

What Buffet means is that sometimes smart people with high IQs make bad decisions in the stock market. 

They think they can out-think the core principles, and very often they are proven wrong.

Better a guy with a 130 IQ that follows the principles than a Rambo investor with a 160 IQ.

#9. Master the basics

Too much "theory" can cramp the brain, Buffet says. 

What you need to know is simply how to VALUE a business, and how to think about market prices.

Everything else is fluff. Too much and you'll suffer financial diabetes.

#8. Don't buy just because everyone likes it … or hates it 

Most people have a herd mindset. They buy because everyone else buys.

Buffet says that's foolish. Then there are those who buy what everyone hates. 

That's not always clever too. Buffet explains its always smarter to look at the REAL numbers than to decide based on public emotion.

#7. Always be liquid

Buffet says it best …

"Berkshire will always have more than ample cash, because we never want to count on the kindness of strangers in order to meet tomorrow’s obligations. When forced to choose, I will not trade even a night’s sleep for the chance of extra profits."

Wise words.

#6. The best time to buy a company is when its in trouble

Buffet says the best time to buy a company is when they are great but in temporary trouble.

Strike when the iron is hot, because this window is not open forever.

#5. Think Long Term

Buffet says that investors should buy at a good price a business that can deliver earnings higher five, ten and twenty years from now.

Few companies meet these standards, so when you find one, buy a good amount of their stock.

Don't stray from this guideline, because if you aren't willing to own it for ten years, don't own it for ten minutes. 

#4. Don't over-stay your welcome

The line between investing and speculation is sometimes blurred, especially when market players make some money – Buffet writes.

During those times, market players know they should take their earnings and leave, but their greed forces them to overplay their hand and outstay their welcome.

This is how people end up losing what they've earned and more.

#3. Forever is a good holding period

Buffet's long-term philosophy is very real as he writes to shareholders – "When we own portions of outstanding businesses with outstanding managements, our favorite holding period is forever."

#2. Buy businesses that can be run by idiots

One of Buffet's favorite sayings is "I try to buy stock in businesses that are so wonderful that an idiot can run them. Because sooner or later, one will.ì

#1. Rule No. 1: never lose money; rule No. 2: don’t forget rule No. 1?

And the number one Warren Buffet rule is simply DO NOT EVER LOSE MONEY.

Follow these Buffet-isms and you too might be on the road to emulating the great man's financial success.

Two people that can help you on your investing journey are local value investing heroes, Sean and Cayden.

Sean and Cayden have studied value investing long and hard, and they have recently put together a course that teaches beginner investors how to make money using proven value investing techniques.

Their course is so good its recommended by Mary Buffet, the daughter-in-law of Warren Buffet … and the only female who has watched the man himself in action for years.

Mary Buffet states – "I'm really impressed with your program. You teach people how to make their money work for them and your program is very important."