5 Best Ways to Learn About Investing in The Stock Market

Investing is not easy, but it doesn’t take a genius.

Our skill set has never fully developed when it comes to knowing where to put our money- there is never a time where you have nothing left to learn.

Whether you are a beginner or you’re already a millionaire, it is always worth keeping up with the latest techniques being developed, or changes in legislation. Investing is a fast-developing area just as much as it holds some core, integral concepts.

But not everyone has the time to read many in-depth books on such a large subject, and not everyone has the money to pay for an education.

Here is a summary of the modern ways we can learn more about investing, and which ones may work best for you. They differ in terms of cost, accessibility, and value.

Here are the Absolute Best Way to Learn About Stocks

Looking for the best ways to learn about investing in the stock market? Whether you’re investing $100,000 or only $500, you want to be smart with your money. 

1. YouTube

Youtube is an incredibly easy way to learn. All we have to do is find valuable channels, and we’re set. A high-quality channel should provide regular content, which usually has videos of the same length and published at the same time every week (or every day).

Once you have found a playlist or channels that provide value, we can view the videos at any time, any place as long as we have an internet connection. This is great for case studies, with long projects being displayed in a visual way – great for visual learners.

There is one drawback of YouTube, though. Many of us learn on our commute, and having to take earphones (half the time you can’t hear beyond the rattle of the bus) as well as a solid data plan that can allow for daily streaming of high-quality videos is not always suitable. Sometimes it is just easier to look at your phone or book to read.

2. Blogs

Blogs are a fantastic way to learn. The unique thing about blogs is that not only do you get great insights, but you get the chance to follow the experiences of the author.

This adds an entirely unique dimension to the learning because we don’t just get the clean-cut theory and summarised overviews. We get to really see the author try out their ideas, and they are usually open about what ideas failed. Learning from the experiences of others is always going to be practically valuable because in investing, what works, in theory, doesn’t always work in real life.

There is also extra motivation when seeing bloggers try out your ideas in real-life. They can quickly become role-models that can guide us – and usually offer advice in the comments. This is a great way to be interactive with your learning, and also involve yourself in an online community.

3. Podcasts

Podcasts are perhaps the ultimate commute learning tool for many. There really is no better way to improve the experience of a long car journey than with interesting dialogue being played through the car speakers. Turning a long journey into a seminar is only one benefit, as we can use podcasts when exercising, too.

This is perhaps the most healthy option of consuming information, and there are a lot of investing podcasts out there.

However, there are limited opportunities to hear case studies or interactively learn from an on-going experience. Instead, podcasts are often stand-alone and not personal.

Whilst there are exceptions, they tend to be for either news or theoretical discussions. This is great, but it doesn’t cover all bases, as opposed to detailed, personal descriptions like in blogging. Additionally, investing is very visual, whether it is portfolio visualizations or calculations, these do not communicate well over audio.

4. Books

Books might be the old fashioned method, but there is no shortage of great books still being published. In fact, there are more books being published now more than ever, and they can provide a unique in-depth approach to learning about investing.

A book can take its time going into detail, particularly on the theory side of investing, and will not resort to commercial activities within the book. Unlike podcasts, which will place adverts part-way through, or YouTubers who are trying to get you to click on their affiliate links… There is no place for this in a book, and often the ideas expressed are in its purest form.

Whilst podcasts, Youtube videos, and blog posts are usually limited in their size, books can provide a whole topic worth of content in one place.

The obvious downsides to books are that they cost money, they take up space, and they are prone to just lying on the shelf and forgotten about. Additionally, they do not get updated when the author encounters new experiences or new evidence.

5. Seminars and courses

Seminars and courses can be a fantastic way to learn. Not only can you get boundary-pushing ideas and experts to give you seminars or even webinars, they are also an incredibly interactive way of learning.

They can be a great way to change your mindset due to being established in a social network with the course leader and pupils. Often there are Facebook groups set up by the course leaders, which allow for a high-quality discussion platform and possibly a good way to network.

Such courses will likely cost a lot of money. But with that money, they often afford you the chance of getting to know the course leader, teacher or lecturer and ask them questions. Such answers from experienced individuals are invaluable and are definitely recommended.

Which method for learning about the stock market is best?

Whether you opt for Youtube or podcasts, or a mix of all 5, it is good to make your own notes as you learn. This can reinforce new information better into your memory, as well as being a great resource to look back on.

This is arguably why reading blogs is a personal favorite of mine, as it kind of already does this step for you. You can still make notes, but it can also be convenient to build up a collection of bookmarked blog posts and organize them into topics.

Additionally, interactive learning and communicating with others is extremely important, particularly in investing. For this reason, seminars are the best option if it can be afforded, with good quality blogs with helpful authors being a great alternative.