After years of saying, “Yeah, I’ll do that ‘someday,’”, I finally became an investor. I opened a Roth IRA and invested in the stock market (a lifecycle fund, to be more specific). I did my initial research and found the following:

• Pretty much everyone should get a Roth (and a 401k, but my work does not offer it…).

• The best places to open a Roth (I went with Vanguard, and will automatically deposit $50/mo).

• A pretty sweet risk personality test.

• Which type of fund was right for me (this was the most difficult, and, admittedly, I ended up making my decision based on my priority of minimizing fees and the recommendation of one person whom I trust). 

      And you know what? When I made my decision, the actual process took –in its entirety—6 minutes. 6. And I feel like I’m at the next echelon in my financial life. I got that awesome feeling that never comes after watching tv or playing video games: a feeling of fulfillment that comes only after you do something that you know will actually substantively improve your life. Win.  

Who else will join me? (Note: Do this after still keeping at least $1000 in an emergency fund and paying off your credit card debt–that definitely takes priority).

Also, here is another good article to refer to to get your head around investing.