Learn stock markets from scratch A beginner's guide

A financial instrument, Stock Market is a company's ownership and its proportionate claim on assets and earnings. Stocks are popularly known as shares or a company's equity. At some point, you will have enough money when you will think, “Wow, I should probably invest in stocks.” If you’re thinking of investing in the stock market - this article is for you.

What is the Stock Market?

Stock market is the collection of exchanges and other venues where buying, selling, and issuance of shares of publicly held companies take place. Such financial activities are conducted through institutionalized formal exchanges or via over-the-counter (OTC) marketplaces that operate under a defined set of regulations. Stock market allows buyers and sellers of securities to meet, interact, and transact. You can also discover the price for shares of corporations and serve as a barometer for the overall economy. Having a number of participants in stock markets, one can be assured of a fair price and a high degree of liquidity as various market participants compete with each other for the best price.

Top ways to learn stock market as a beginner

Here is the guide to know how to get started:

Read Books: Investors should read various books based on the Investment in the Stock Market. There are a number of books available in the market like “Basics of Financial Market”, “A Guide for Intelligent Investment” by Mr. Rajiv Ranjan Singh. The other books based on the stock market are as follows:

1. The Intelligent Investor
2. One up on the wall street
3. Let’s Talk Money
4. Fundamental Analysis for Investors
5. Stocks to Riches: Insights on Investor Behaviour
6. The Warren Buffett Way
7. The little book that beats the market
8. Common Stocks and uncommon profits
9. How to make money in Stocks

Analyze the Market: Investors should analyze the market in the best manner before investing their money. It is important to keep oneself updated with the news of the stock market to analyze the past trends and learn the pattern in the best way. The Stock Market gets affected by political, economic and global factors, analyzing the ups and downs of the stock market will prove beneficial in the long run.

Online Courses: There are a lot of stock market online courses available. Many online sites offer courses and certifications in stock market trading. One can be a trader or investor in the stock market. There are various types of financial needs, investors can choose the required investment product. Top online courses for understanding the investment in the stock market are as follows:

1. Udemy’s Ultimate Stock Market Investing
2. Stock Market From Scratch for Complete Beginners
3. The Investing and Trading Library from TD Ameritrade

Expert Advice: Financial Experts can help in financial planning. They provide students with personalized investment solutions. One can take their advice to make smarter investment decisions. What is the best place to get stock advice? Following are some of the valuable stock advisors and investment advice & research sites that will help you make better-investing decisions.

1. Rule Breakers
2. Zacks Investment Research
3. Morningstar Investment Newsletters
4. InvestTech Research
5. Kiplinger's Investment Newsletters
6. Seeking Alpha
7. Yahoo! Finance
8. MarketWatch

Open Demat and Trading account: Initially, investors should begin with investing in a small way. If someone wants to trade in the Stock Market then having a Demat and Trading Account to buy and sell shares is necessary. This account acts as a repository that keeps the shares in digital or electronic form whereas the Trading account is used to buy and sell the shares and securities in the stock market. Demat and Trading accounts can be easily opened online.

Follow a Mentor: Mentors are needed for getting guidance regarding investments. They teach investors the tricks of trading. A mentor is a person who has more years of experience in investment. It is the best way of starting a career in the required field. Beginners can find their mentors in their local investing group. Various cities organise groups meet regularly to discuss trading, investing, and the stock market in general. These groups often have long-term members with deep market knowledge and varied backgrounds who are more than willing to help less-experienced traders.

Explore Seminars: Seminars can provide valuable insights into the overall market and investment types of the market. The experts share their experience and how they have started their journey in the stock market. 

Precautions before Investing

Learning about investing in the stock market can be overwhelming. It is important to know the do’s and don’ts of the market before starting any investment with your hard earned money. Some of the precautionary tips before investing are as follows:

• Start with small amount of money
• Buy stock from different industries/sources
• Avoid investing in tips/advice
• Do your research and have a plan or strategy
• Invest regularly and increase your investment

Hence, the stock market is one of the platforms wherein you can earn inflation-beating returns and thus let your money work for you rather than working for money. There are other ways to invest your money too but Stock markets tend to be one of the most liquid ones. As in, you can convert your securities easily into cash when needed.