I made $12,000 in the stock market!

Unfortunately, the $12,000 was fake money. It was all part of an investing exercise a few of the newer employees at Stockwatch took part in, where we could use a total of $100,000 to invest in no more than 10 companies at a time. I never used that entire amount, investing about $70,000 maximum, to get $12,000 in proceeds.

Not bad for a beginner, I'd say. Before starting at Stockwatch the stock market was as strange and arcane to me as driving a car would be to a dog.

I'd definitely recommend anyone interested in dabbling in the stock market to start by spending from three to six months setting up a personal portfolio of companies for an investing simulation before actually putting down any money. It's a good way to learn about investing quickly.

Investing exercise

I've finally gotten used to my new working hours at Stockwatch. They're from 6 a.m. to 2 p.m., which means my day starts at 4:15 a.m. every weekday. As long as I get enough sleep, I feel great.

I'm starting the Canadian Securities Course this week, which will teach me all I need to know to become a stock broker. I'm not planning on changing careers, of course; I'm just taking one more step to becoming a business reporter. The home-based study course will come in handy over the next few weeks as I set up 10 portfolios to invest $100,000 total in 10 companies. The money is completely fictional, of course, as are the investments. The exercise in investing is meant to help me learn the market and gain investment strategies.

A couple of years ago I asked my uncle, real estate businessman Eric Trygg, what I should do to learn investing. He suggested something very similar to the exercise above. He also added that, since the stock market is so huge, I should specialize in one or two areas (such as mining) and really learn those sectors of the stock market instead of trying to spread my interests too thin. That advice is good for anyone getting into the stock market.