So you have decided you want to invest in the stock market. You've surely heard the age old adage "Buy low - Sell high", and now you are trying to figure out when you should Buy, and later how you will know when you should Sell. The answer is actually simpler than you may think...

When it comes to trying to figure out how to time the market, you simply shouldn't bother. The reality is, the best way for most people to get the biggest return from the market is simply to buy and hold, preferably an Index Fund. While this isn't the sexiest answer or the sexiest strategy, it is the most reliable. When it comes to your money and planning for the future, reliability beats sexy every time.

This is not to say that you cannot take advantage of certain market events. If the market takes a huge downturn, that is likely a great time to buy (while the prices are low). While this may seem obvious through the lens of someone following the "Buy low - Sell high" philosophy, it is shockingly counter-intuitive. Whenever there is a decline in the market, you will notice that nearly everyone you speak to about the markets will be talking about how they are steering clear, and what an awful time it is in the market. People fear short-term losses. But the reality is that any losses you may have taken in 2008 would be more than made up for (with a tidy profit if you bought more) by 2016. Again, this is assuming you stick with Index Funds.