Do you remember learning about the concept of “static friction” in science class in high school? It’s this phenomenon that a object at rest requires more force to START moving than an object in motion requires to continue to move it. You can imagine starting to push a block across a table. One it gets “unstuck” it’s easier to keep pushing.

It’s the same with investing. If you’re new to investing, there is a TON of static friction. It’s a terrifying world to step into. Day trading, options, futures, crypto, earnings reports, wall street, oh my! It seems like only the most serious of experts who devote their lives to it could compete in that world.

But here’s a great little secret about investing: Optimal investing is really easy. All that scary stuff is just noise that is to be ignored. There’s a shortcut around all of it. It’s called an index fund. Buying an index fund means the growth and profits of all the companies goes back to you. That’s it. Simple, easy, and optimal. Just figure out which buttons to click to invest in an index fund (the tall part of the “difficulty” line in this chart) and you’re done! Then you just sit back and do nothing. The longer the time goes on, the easier it feels and the more money you make.

So get over that hump, get your first dollar invested! It’s the hardest part.

As always, reminding you to build wealth by following the two PFC rules: 1.) Live below your means and 2.) Invest early and often.

-Jeremy