Investing in the future - An animated discussion

Greetings everyone!

Once upon a time i wrote a post about how to invest in the stock market in Kuwait, i've since received a few questions here and there about it over the years, and now i think it is time to revisit the topic, but open it up to include more markets.

As expats, we live in trying times. It is difficult to know what the future holds, but a wise man once said that there is no bad time to start investing. I like to follow that doctrine.

To me, I need to find shares that suit my needs, meaning:

1) Affordable - so you can scale, buy more in the future.

2) Dependable - the company is not likely to go bankrupt soon.

3) Dividend providing - and this part we'll speak about separately.

Dividend is your return on investment, it is like interest. Before we begin, we should mention that there are 3 ways you benefit from owning shares:

1) Price appreciation - you bought shares at 100fils, they are now worth 200fils. This is only realized when you sell your shares, and it is a one-time benefit.

2) Cash dividends - as a reward for owning shares, the company pays you an amount in cash, it is always a % per share, so lets say you have 1000 shares in company A, they declared cash dividends of 10%, so you get 100 currency.

3) Bonus shares, or stock dividends - the best type of benefit in my opinion, the company rewards you by giving you more stock, so lets say you had 1000 shares in company A, but they declared a 10% stock dividend, that means that next year you have 1,100 shares, if they declare again, you get 110 (that is right, compound interest).

Now yes, there is another more risky way to make money on the stock market, options trading, but it is highly risky, and i dont do it, so i wont mention it here.

The point is, if you look at your investment as something over atleast 20 years, with consistent stock dividends, you can really end up with a nice nest egg for your retirement, your childre's tuition, marriage etc.

Start now, the best time to buy is during uncertainty when stock prices are going down. I jumped all in on the crypto craze and would advise people to avoid it, stocks have been around for much longer, and they're tangible.

How do you pick the winning stocks? Ask, and i'll tell you