I feel like this is terrible advice. If you have $10,000, there are safer ways to invest it. If you are using a short blog post to plan your retirement and ultimately your future, you are in trouble!<p>Check out mutual funds (managed) and index funds. Get your feet wet slowly in something with a low risk. Don't jump into the stock market and just choose companies you like across different industries. This is a recipe for disaster.<p>Get started by <i>learning</i> about the market instead of throwing money at it. Don't invest until you know who you're giving your money to, and what expectations you should have.<p>Some beginner sites that helped me out:<p><a href="http://www.mrmoneymustache.com/2011/05/18/how-to-make-money-in-the-stock-market/" rel="nofollow">http://www.mrmoneymustache.com/2011/05/18/how-to-make-money-...</a><p><a href="http://www.mrmoneymustache.com/2011/06/07/where-should-i-invest-my-short-term-stash/" rel="nofollow">http://www.mrmoneymustache.com/2011/06/07/where-should-i-inv...</a><p><a href="http://www.reddit.com/r/personalfinance" rel="nofollow">http://www.reddit.com/r/personalfinance</a>