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Something we have all come across at least once in our lives and one of those things that we know is legitimate and exists although we'd turn a blind eye to it, confused? I'm referring to the stock market in this case. Most people would view the stock market like the dark web, it's not accessible to the common man and would probably require you to stretch out every neural pathway of the brain and sell a kidney or two to get started (The last one is most certainly not true for stocks but I can't tell in case of the dark web if your interested that is).
What exactly does it mean to invest in stocks? Let's assume you go out shopping and see that there is a huge crowd in the big bazaar. You'd probably think that the guy who owns a big bazaar has huge profits going on. Guess what? You are anyways buying from there and also see it being profitable, why not take this a step ahead and purchase its stocks? I'll give you another example - Amazon. Well, not literally although that would also be great, We do see a spread of eCommerce websites, even more now due to the virus, people are mostly swapping to online purchasing due to which Courier and Logistics companies are running profits, look through a bunch of them locally, or just see which company is sourcing your amazon deliveries and invest in it.
Convinced yet? What about education - people would never stop going to get it, so invest in education companies. Everything that you as a consumer purchase is also an opportunity to invest in. You could simply start with brands that you use on a daily basis and once you get a hang of it, you could start looking into other companies within the market, learn how to analyze their profit margins and balance sheets. But you don't need to do that to get started.
Now you understand what investing means but you feel like it's still too much risk. Well I won't lie, stocks are subject to market risks but it's not something that you can't wrap your head around. There are 2 things you can do when you invest in stocks: invest or trade or both. The higher the risk, the higher and faster the chances of reward.
We have all heard of Sensex and Nifty at some point in our lives and how they fluctuate highly in extremes. But here is the thing, no one would or should pick a stock in Sensex and expect to make profits the very next day. They are long-term investments. It is very well possible that when you invest, a stock might in some cases lose all its value and go into negative returns but that is if you approach it in a short sense. These are those stocks you buy and leave in your cupboard and open after 30 years or at least aren't ones you should be looking at daily. While trading is just you buy something at a lower rate or maybe even a standardized rate when you expect it to go higher and sell it off when it reaches that price. You benefit marginally.
Now you want to start investing but you are afraid that you don't have the financial knowledge...let me stop you right there before you complete the sentence, you don't need it! I'd rather not name drop but most people involved with stocks in the higher positions, aren't even related to finance fields. Law graduates, engineer students, fashion - stocks don't discriminate. Top tier stock investors neither are from finance backgrounds nor did they start from huge amounts. You don't need to sell organs to start stocks. It's like a day-to-day purchase scenario. I'm sure we all wanted a phone on the pricier end at some point and saved up for it, stocks aren't any different.
Okay assuming I have managed to convince you totally, you're now interested to know where you should start? Many platforms would give you this opportunity but I'd personally recommend - "Zerodha". It's beginner-friendly, has a simple user interface, and is 0 brokerage. Compared to all other platforms the cut-off percentage is quite minimal. You'd have 2 accounts offered to you: Demat & Trading account (or equity and currency trading) or Commodity account (for commodity trading).
Below are the steps for getting your account started:
Use your email address to get registered
Provide your PAN number
Pay an account opening fee (Rs. 200 - for Trading & Demat accounts; Rs. 100 - for Commodity account)
Link your identification details with the online government website (Digi Locker Facility) and the website automatically pulls the required online documents.
Upload your bank statements.
Sign your documents digitally and then provide a Webcam IPV (In-Person verification)
Finally, mail required documents to Zerodha
Here you go! You have everything laid out in front of you to go ahead with your stock investment venture. I hope this clears out the "unattainable" vibe stocks have and reassures you to start one today - right now!! If you are able to have a growth-oriented approach where you learn as you have grown and not necessarily an I'll figure out everything before I step in one, you're bound to succeed. -- Keerthi
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