Investing For Beginners: Make Your Money Work For You 24/7

Investing might seem like something only the wealthy or financially savvy do, but the truth is that anyone can start investing in mutual funds and reap the potential benefits of long-term investing. The key idea, that any investing for beginners course will tell you, is that it’s all about making your money work for you. Instead of just sitting in an account, your money works for you day and night. If that sounds too good to be true… Let’s break it down.

Learn how to invest your money for building passive income

When you earn money from a job, you’re trading your time and effort for a paycheck. This is called active income. Investing, on the other hand, is a form of passive income—money that can grow and earn more money without requiring your constant effort. Essentially, your money starts working for you, and can generate returns even when you’re not actively engaged.

Imagine planting a tree that produces fruit year after year. In this analogy, your money is the seed, and investing is the process of planting that seed in fertile soil. With time and patience, that tree grows, bearing fruit that you can enjoy for years to come.

How does investing work?

Investing works by leveraging the power of compound growth and market dynamics. Learning how to invest your money starts with familiarizing yourself with a few fundamental concepts:

Compound Interest

The goal of investing is to make returns on your initial investment. Over time, those returns would then start earning their own returns. This is the magic of compound interest.

For example, if you invest $1,000 in a stock that grows 8% annually, you’ll have $1,080 at the end of the first year. But in the second year, you’re not just earning 8% on $1,000—you’re earning it on $1,080. As time goes on, this compounding effect snowballs, allowing your money to potentially grow more quickly (without any work from you).

There is no guarantee that you would experience any particular level of growth over particular periods, or that investment decisions identified and discussed were or will be profitable. Specific investment advice references provided herein are for illustrative purposes only and are not necessarily representative of investments that will be made in the future. Investing is subject to several risks, any of which could cause the loss of money.

Dividends

Many companies share their profits with investors through dividends. If you invest in dividend-paying stocks, you have an opportunity to receive regular payments just for holding those stocks. You can reinvest these dividends to buy more shares, with the intention to increase your future dividend payments.

Capital Appreciation

Ideally, the value of your investments grows over time, allowing you to sell them for more than you paid. This is known as capital appreciation. For instance, if you buy a stock for $50 and it grows to $100, you’ve doubled your money. Many investments, especially in well-established companies, have the potential to grow over the long-term.

Diversification

By spreading your investments across different types of assets—like stocks, bonds, and real estate—you have a strategy that can help alleviate market volatility while allowing your money to grow. A diversification strategy helps protect your investments from the ups and downs of any single market, aiming toward stable growth.

What’s the best way to save and invest money?

Trick question—there are a lot of great ways to start investing. The most important part is that you start!

The earlier you start investing, the more time your money has the chance to grow. Even small investments can turn into larger amounts over time thanks to the compounding effect. For example, investing $100 a month at an 8% annual return could grow to over $150,000 in 30 years. The key is to start as soon as possible and be consistent.

Many people think they need a large sum of money to start investing, but that’s not true. The minimum investment for NASDX, an award-winning mutual fund* that invests in today’s most innovative companies, is $1000. This means that you can begin building wealth at your own pace.

There is no guarantee that you would experience any particular level of growth over particular periods, or that investment decisions identified and discussed were or will be profitable. Specific investment advice references provided herein are for illustrative purposes only and are not necessarily representative of investments that will be made in the future. Investing is subject to several risks, any of which could cause the loss of money.

Investing while you sleep

The idea of making money while you sleep might sound like a dream, but it’s a reality with investing. When you invest in assets that grow over time, your money is constantly at work, whether you’re awake or asleep, at work, or on vacation.

Investing is one of the most powerful ways to build wealth and help secure your financial future. By putting your money to work, you’re potentially setting yourself up for long-term growth and financial independence. Whether you’re saving for retirement, a house, or simply looking to grow your wealth, investing can help you reach your goals without requiring you to trade time for money constantly. So why wait?

Click here to learn more about how NASDX can help your money work for you.

Important Information

*For important ranking criteria, please visit Forbes.com and Time.com.

An investment in the Fund involves risk, including possible loss of principal. Fund information is not intended to represent future portfolio composition. Portfolio holdings are subject to change and should not be considered a recommendation to buy individual securities.

Received an Overall Morningstar Rating^TM of 5 stars among 1,092 Large Growth funds, based on the risk-adjusted returns, as of 6/30/2024.

The fund’s Morningstar three-, five-, ten-year ratings respectively, 4 stars, 5 stars, 5 stars among 1,092, 1,019, 794 funds.

The Fund invests in the largest non-financial companies that are traded on the Nasdaq Stock Market. They are currently concentrated in the technology sector which has been among the volatile sectors of the U.S. stock market. During a declining stock market, this fund would lose money. It would potentially lose more money than other large cap funds.

Important Information for Morningstar® Rating

Nasdaq®, Nasdaq-100® and Nasdaq-100 Index® are trade or service marks of The Nasdaq Stock Market, Inc. which with its affiliates are the “Corporations”) and are licensed for use by the Fund. The Fund has not been passed on by the Corporations as to their legality or suitability. The Fund is not issued, endorsed, sold, or promoted by the Corporations. The Corporations make no warranties and bear no liability with respect to the Fund. Diversification does not assure a profit or protect against lost in a declining market.

It is not possible for individuals to invest directly in an index. Performance figures for an index do not reflect deductions for sales charges, commissions, expenses or taxes.

Shelton Funds are distributed by RFS Partners, a member of FINRA and affiliate of Shelton Capital Management.

Investors should consider a fund’s investment objectives, risks, charges, and expenses carefully before investing. The prospectus contains this and other information about the fund. To obtain a prospectus, visit www.sheltonfunds.com or call (800) 955-9988. A prospectus should be read carefully before investing.

INVESTMENTS ARE NOT FDIC INSURED OR BANK GUARANTEED AND MAY LOSE VALUE.