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When we think of stocks and shares, we tend to think of full time careers working for banks, hedge funds, and asset management companies. But this doesn’t necessarily have to be the case. Believe it or not, you can engage with the stock market on a more casual basis around your existing work and commitments. Sure, you will have to show a certain level of dedication to the venture if you intend to make significant money from it. But it is possible to make money through stocks and shares without committing your entire life to the cause. If this sounds good to you, here are a few ways that you can get involved!

Choosing a Market

First, you need to choose which market you want to engage with. There are several out there, but the most common tend to be the stock market, foreign exchange (you can find an FX List here), options, and contract for differences. Once you have chosen a particular market, you can start to conduct further research into it, figuring out how it works and how you can use it to your advantage.

Getting a Little Practice In

It’s a good idea to get a little practice in before investing real life money. This means that losses won’t hit quite so hard while you’re getting used to the way trading works. A good option is to use the Investopedia stock simulator. This allows you to engage with the real life stock market in real time. The only difference is that you are using pretend money instead of real money. Sure, you won’t be able to take any profits that you make as your own, but you won’t be hit with any losses either. As you build up your confidence and slowly familiarize yourself with how things work, you can start investing real money and making some profit for yourself. There are other simulators out there that you might like to try out, but the Investopedia option is a good place to start.

Using Apps

If you can’t dedicate all of your time to your venture into stocks and shares, you can make use of apps that help to monitor the market for you. They will notify you when you might want to buy or sell shares in different areas. This lightens the pressure from your shoulders.

Using a Broker

Alternatively, if this all seems a little overwhelming to you, you can trust your investments in a stock broker. This professional will be able to engage with the market on your behalf. Of course, this will cost you, as their services don’t come for free. But it is a simple way to make money from stocks without feeling the pressure yourself.

As you can see, stocks and shares are a surprisingly accessible venture, and if you want to make some serious money, you can engage with the area to varying degrees to suit your current and preferred lifestyle!