I have my crisp $20.00 bill in my hand. I walk into one of those brick buildings that have the perfectly manicured landscaping and those huge double glass doors as an entrance. I confidently walk over to someone sitting behind one of those "to die for" mahogany desks and plunk down my $20.00 bill.

The gentleman sitting behind the desk looks up at me from over the top of his glasses, and asks, "May I help you?"

"Sure" I respond. "I want to invest my $20.00 bill in the Stock Market!"

You have my permission to finish this story in any way you see fit. I won't bore you with the conversation. You know exactly what would have happened.

Not only would they probably not have accepted my $20, (it might not meet their minimum requirement) but also more importantly, I could never have done that. The sheer embarrassment of the situation and my lack of knowledge about the stock market have kept me from even thinking about doing something like that!

The other thing that has held me at bay is the minimum amount usually required to purchase stocks or bonds. Even at a small $100.00 amount, I could never have invested in the Stock Market. I can't save up that kind of money. It just isn't going to happen to me in my lifetime. I don't have the skills to do that. If I ever saved $100.00 at one time, I'd find something else more important to buy than a stock. No doubt, I would get something for my son that he says he desperately has to have or he'll die.

You get the picture. I have $20.00 in my possession. I know that if I can just jump-start myself with a small amount, then I'll be able to add to it over time. But I've got to take that first step, and with just a small amount of money. That's the best I can do right now and as I've found…that's all I need.

I could never have invested that small amount before. But you know what? I can do that now, online, because of the explosion of the Web. I can do it and I don't even have to worry about being embarrassed! The Web has opened up many opportunities for those of us that just can't seem to save $100.00 or $500.00 minimum for investing. And, this is actually what originally tweaked my interest in the Stock Market to begin with.

So now, I can no longer hide behind the excuse: I don't ever have enough money to invest (say it with a whine, Moms, like our kids do). With amounts as low as about $20.00 and sometimes even less, I can finally take that first step.

With my $20.00 bill, I can now look at some of the opportunities available to me. But first I wanted to know about "real world" trading, pre-World Wide Web days, and how the trading of stocks and bonds originally, and continues, to take place.

Well...Moms. Before I move on, here's an interesting tidbit from another excellent book I've been reading, Eight $teps to $even Figure$ by Charles B. Carlson (another highly recommended book) in which he notes "By some estimates, a baby born today will cost parents about $104,000 by age seventeen and $600,000 (including schooling and wedding) by the time he or she reaches age twenty-five."

Okay…stop panicking! If that isn't a good enough reason for us to start investing RIGHT NOW, I don't know what is. Just keep in mind, these time-honored words of wisdom: How do you eat an elephant? One bite at a time. So…let's keep biting, one small bite at a time.

First, the lingo. That building that I so eloquently described in the beginning actually has several different labels. It is referred to, per Investors Words, as a "brokerage house," "brokerage firm," "brokerage," and even just "broker" sometimes, when not referring to an individual person.

And finally, the term "broker" is defined as "an individual or firm, which acts as an intermediary between a buyer and seller, usually charging a commission."

For next week, I'll find out why The Motley Fools, in their book, define a broker as "One who sells financial products. Whether in insurance, real estate, or stocks, most brokers work under compensation structures that are at direct odds with the greatest good of their clients."

Most stockbrokers work under a commission-based structure not unlike your real estate broker, car salesperson, or insurance broker. The commissions stockbrokers charge are governed by regulatory rules that are strictly enforced. Today, stockbrokers still perform a vital role for certain investors.

Well…now that's an interesting insight!

Thank you for joining me

Joyce