Not sure what to invest your 401k in?

Here's a guide for the most common options and who they are for:

When it comes to investing there are almost endless ways to do it. If you have mastered the Fundamentals and are wondering what else is out there, this article will break down some of the more common forms of investing.

Stocks, bonds, 401(k)s, IRAs, oh my!

The list of financial jargon is endless. For most people that don’t make it a full time job the world of investing is a complex, confusing, and oftentimes scary place.

The challenge is, you know it is essential to build your wealth and be in a position to make work optional. So you Google “how to invest”. And you get over 4 billion results.

Now what…

Gold.

That yellow shiny stuff that has been coveted for millennia.

Do you own any?

Should you own any?

How do you get some?

What would you do with it?

For the longest time it was always my goal to make money when the markets declined. I thought that would be the ultimate proof of skill. And, if you could do this, that would allow you to increase your compounding by minimizing or even eliminating losses in your portfolio.

A question I commonly hear from professionals that have achieved financial stability is, “What Now?”. After working for a handful of years and getting the major pieces of your financial life in order:

• Balanced cash flow

• Emergency fund

• Saving in 401k and/or IRA

• Saving in HSA

What do you do now?

The hard part about investing isn’t knowing what or when to buy, it’s knowing when to sell. Selling is infinitely more important than when or what you buy, because selling is the moment where your gains (or losses) are realized.

Who doesn’t want to be a millionaire? Not only do you get the status from all those commas in your bank account, $1,000,000 invested in the stock market or real estate can typically produce around $50,000 in passive income. For someone without debt (or kids) that’s enough money to buy back at least some of the time you spend at your job right now.

Financial Freedom. It’s a term that gets thrown around a lot, but do you know what it means? Everyone’s definition may vary slightly, but at its core, it means you are not constrained by money. You have put yourself in a position where you can make choices based on your values, not your bank accounts. There are three primary skills you need to master to achieve financial freedom: Cash Flow, Planning, and Investing.