In short: Investing into the same asset in fixed amounts over time. It doesn't inherently improve your returns, but is a good idea to save consistently over time (not in lumps that you can procrastinate on).
There are also benefits to your psyche. If you invest all at once, the asset value could drop by 50% the next day, and you feel horrible. If you had invested that money over time, your asset would not be 50% of your total investment.
Again, this doesn't actually mean you get more returns. It just reduces the volatility of your returns at any one point in time.
$1000: Depending on the company, now you can start looking into mutual funds. Personally, I would invest it in a nice vacation
$10000: This is firm mutual fund territory. Simple Vanguard index fund.
$100000: At this level I like real estate, but I've never made it this high so I can't really say. But I've been close enough that I've thought about it.
And any higher I am just blowing smoke because I have no real knowledge of monetary numbers that high.
My boring answer... At every level you'd look at your available investment choices and try to balance a predictable return with the rate of potential growth. Hopefully as you walk up that latter, you get stepped into a more lucrative pool of choices. Likely the best things available on each rung are going to be the investments that you personally understand best.
$1 - A can and a piece of cardboard to use to beg for money
I think he's saying that investing in smaller (small-cap) companies is a better idea because it's easier for a small company to grow 10x in the next 20yrs than IBM to grow 10x in 20yrs.
$1: top-up someone else's metro card, it will restore their faith in humanity
$10: find a neighbourhood coffee shop, buy a coffee, tip the rest, talk to locals
$100: Kindle/books
$1,000: Choose a trade, buy the tools, master them
$10,000: Travel outside your comfort zone, talk to locals, learn their language, get perspective
$100,000: Invest half, spend the other half on the previous items
$1,000,000+: Don't be a money-driven role model to others, study politics and people, use your financial cushion to do good in your community. Stay interested, stay awesome.
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[ 3.9 ms ] story [ 45.7 ms ] threadDollar-cost-average into a Vanguard index fund.
There are also benefits to your psyche. If you invest all at once, the asset value could drop by 50% the next day, and you feel horrible. If you had invested that money over time, your asset would not be 50% of your total investment.
Again, this doesn't actually mean you get more returns. It just reduces the volatility of your returns at any one point in time.
If you would like to get a good overview of strategies like this, read this wiki. http://www.bogleheads.org/wiki/Dollar_cost_averaging
$10: Two five dollar scratch offs
$100: Books
$1000: Depending on the company, now you can start looking into mutual funds. Personally, I would invest it in a nice vacation
$10000: This is firm mutual fund territory. Simple Vanguard index fund.
$100000: At this level I like real estate, but I've never made it this high so I can't really say. But I've been close enough that I've thought about it.
And any higher I am just blowing smoke because I have no real knowledge of monetary numbers that high.
$1 - A can and a piece of cardboard to use to beg for money
$10 - A spray bottle and rag to wash cars with
$100 - A book
$1,000 - A few classes at community college
$10,000 - A really cheap degree of some sort
$100,000 - Index funds
$1,000,000 - Rental property
$10: keep in my checking account
$100: keep in my saving account
$1,000: buy CD/treasury I-series bond
$10,000: buy index mutual fund
$100,000: buy index mutual funds
$1,000,000: buy index mutual funds, a few stocks, primary residence
$10,000,000: buy index mutual funds, stocks, primary residence, real estate investment, a portion dedicated to 'pay it forward'.
...
Whiiiish.... Went right over my head. ;-)
The Sharpe ratio is a measure of the Risk/Return for a given investment - http://www.investopedia.com/terms/s/sharperatio.asp
$10: find a neighbourhood coffee shop, buy a coffee, tip the rest, talk to locals
$100: Kindle/books
$1,000: Choose a trade, buy the tools, master them
$10,000: Travel outside your comfort zone, talk to locals, learn their language, get perspective
$100,000: Invest half, spend the other half on the previous items
$1,000,000+: Don't be a money-driven role model to others, study politics and people, use your financial cushion to do good in your community. Stay interested, stay awesome.
What would you do with the remaining $38,889? Rinse and repeat the list?