What are the right stocks to trade? For many people, they base the answer to that question on tips they have over heard from others who they perceive as more in tune with the stock market. Its a simple way to select stocks. Its also a simple way to lose money.

You wouldn't buy some land in Florida or bet on a horse just because a guy you know says its a sure thing. So why would you do the same thing investing in stocks? The challenge for most people is that there is so much information available, its difficult to make a decision. Based on fundamentals? Based on intuition? Do you buy based on charts?

Most Often, its a combination of all three.

Its interesting how many people have asked me to invest their $500, trade a penny stocks, and give them a call when its worth $20 000 sometime next week. It simply doesn't work that way. Anyone who tells you that, is trying to fool you. To quote Gordon Gekko - "a fool and his money should never have been together in the first place". So unless you are a fool, in which case, hand over your $500 and I'll give you a call when its $10k, do yourself a favor, and learn a bit about investing.

Learning about stocks doesn't have to be difficult. You just have to know what you're looking for. What type of trading style matches your ability to trade and your willingness to risk your hard earned cash.

While penny stocks will give you the biggest reward, its also matched by the biggest risk. Trading futures will give you even more of a return, but you risk much more. Blue chip lowers your risk and provides lower returns. Scalping, momentum and day trading all require you to be glued to your monitor. There's good money to be made doing it, but, you need to sit in front of your computer each and every day, ready to sell or buy when conditions are right.

So what is the best stock to invest in? The answer changes every day, and for the most part, it depends on what level of risk you want to take on. Remember, there are tens of thousands of publicly traded companies out there. Once you figure out what type of investor you are, you'll narrow that list down significantly until you find the right trading opportunity for you.