Deciding What Companies To Invest In: First Glance

Before you actually buy shares, you'll need to do a little more research to ensure they are well run businesses.

Peter Lynch is widely regarded as one of the best investors of all time. He coined the idea of investing in what you know.

This mantra is central to the MyWallSt investing philosophy, but we take it one step further and say: "Buy what you believe in."

As a consumer, you've spent your whole life interacting with businesses, whether it be large multinationals like Coca-Cola or your local grocery store.

Your first step in finding great companies is to start looking at the companies that you, as a consumer, like.

What brand of sporting wear do you buy?

What food do you always have in your fridge?

What websites do you visit most frequently?

Chances are a good deal of these are publicly listed companies that you can buy shares in.

Use the knowledge from your own job. If you work in healthcare, you likely have industry knowledge that the rest of us don't. If you work in IT, you probably know the best companies for network solutions, or cybersecurity, or e-commerce software.

But don't stop there. Find out what companies your family and friends like.

If you have a friend who works in retail, ask what items are selling best.

Check out the lines outside the restaurants in your area.

Take all this knowledge that is around you and come up with a list of companies that you're interested in.

Remember, just because you like a company doesn't mean it's a good investment. To discover that, we'll need to look a bit more closely.

Remember when investing in companies:

• Invest in companies that you understand and believe in.
• Use your own knowledge and that of your friends and family to discover great investing opportunities
• Once you have a few companies in mind, you have to dig deeper to ensure they are well run businesses before investing.

MyWallSt operates a full disclosure policy. MyWallSt staff currently holds long positions in companies mentioned above. Read our full disclosure policy here.