As a small retail investor it is a common dream to hit that winning lottery ticket by finding and investing in the Microsofts, Amazons, and Apples at their beginnings. However, that is just not realistic to the “little guy” without being fully and completely immersed in whatever that next unicorn start-up is going to be. It it just too difficult as a small investor because you are at too much of an informational disadvantage.
But all is not lost. In my twenty-five years of investing my small amount of investable money by far and away the very best investments have been in large companies like Home Depot (HD), Visa (V), and Microsoft (MSFT)(well after it went public). I’ve tried to find some small companies and invested in several but they have almost all been a bust. I’ve not done the complete numbers but at the best I’ve broken even which overall is still a loss because if I’d put that money into big companies (S&P 500 sized) I’d be ahead with practically no risk.
Therefore, don’t spend a ton of time chasing a magical lottery ticket of start-ups. Go to the big guys and invest most of your funds there. You will not regret it. Save the moon-shot money to not more than 5% of your portfolio.
On another note, if you are looking for a gift for the young reader in your life, you can find some great children’s books on Amazon. Just go to these links The Desert Fairies of Oylara, The Rainforest Fairies of Oylara, and The Artic Fairies of Oylara and order them.
Finally, check out some pretty cool music on YouTube if you have a few minutes: Introduction , Mosh, Smoke, and Watch Out . Enjoy!
Patient and Disciplined Saving 