You should be looking at a long-term investment. Mutual funds, which spread the risk among different companies and sectors, are a good choice, especially if you initially have a limited amount you want to invest and are risk-averse. The ideal is to find a broker you can trust, tell him/her the risk level you feel comfortable with, and let him/her go from there. BTW, I confess that I only look at the value of my (limited) portfolio when I get my monthly statements from the broker. The guy in the next cube checks his at least three times a day and has to take stomach medicine. You can take this stuff too seriously....
