Investing Basics-What are Your Investment Goals

When it comes to investing, many first-time investors want to jump right in with both feet. Unfortunately, very few of those investors are successful. Investing in anything requires some degree of skill. It is important to remember that few investments are a sure thing there is the risk of losing your money!

Before you jump right in, it is better to not only find out more about investing and how it all works, but also to determine what your goals are. What do you hope to achieve with your investments? Will you be funding a college education? Buying a home? Retiring? Before you invest a single penny, really think about what you hope to achieve with that investment. Knowing what your goal is will help you make smarter investment decisions along the way!

Too often, people invest money with dreams of becoming rich overnight. This is possible but it is also rare. It is usually a very bad idea to start investing with hopes of becoming rich overnight. It is safer to invest your money in such a way that it will grow slowly over time, and be used for retirement or a child’s education. However, if your investment goal is to get rich quick, you should learn as much about high-yield, short term investing as you possibly can before you invest.

You should strongly consider talking to a financial planner before making any investments. Your financial planner can help you determine what type of investing you must do to reach the financial goals that you have set. He or she can give you realistic information as to what kind of returns you can expect and how long it will take to reach your specific goals.

Again, remember that investing requires more than calling a broker and telling them that you want to buy stocks or bonds. It takes a certain amount of research and knowledge about the market if you hope to invest successfully.

Most investors simply want a good return on their investment.  But what is considered a good return?  Enough for retirement?  If it is based on what they want for retirement the question becomes how long is it until retirement age?  If it is in two years your investment strategy will be much different than for those who are retiring in 15 years’ time.

Goals - targets - aims, they all help us to focus on getting to the end of the race with the result we want. Goals to help you focus on your investment are what help you design your investment plan. Do you need to be aggressive and look for a major return or can you simply protect your savings and earn a more modest return to reach your goal? Set yourself a (realistic) towards it, keeping it in mind always. Be modest and be focused.