Most "investing for beginners" content is useless. They tell you to "start early" and "diversify" but never tell you what to actually DO with your first $100.

So here's exactly what I'd do:

Step 1: Open a brokerage account (takes 10 min, $0 minimums on most platforms now)

Step 2: Put $50 into a broad market ETF — something like a total stock market fund. You're buying a tiny piece of thousands of companies at once. One purchase, instant diversification.

Step 3: Put $30 into a bond ETF — this is your safety net. It won't grow fast, but it won't crash hard either.

Step 4: Keep $20 in cash — this is your "opportunity fund." When something dips, you buy more.

Step 5: Set up automatic deposits — even $10/week adds up to $520/year. That compounds.

The hardest part isn't picking stocks — it's actually pressing the button. Most people overthink it for months and lose out on gains the whole time.

I built NovaBull to help people go from "I should invest" to "I just invested" as fast as possible. No jargon. No gatekeeping.

If that sounds like you, come check it out.