Stock trading is not for everyone. In order to be a good stock trader you must first understand market fundamentals and then build upon that knowledge to make good stock picks.

You must know how the markets move. You must know the various indexes and how they perform. You must know how different types of stock classes i.e. blue chips, small caps, equities, etc respond to real world events.

You must understand how interest rates impact the various stock classes.

You must be able to recognize buy and sell signs. And this list is just for starters.

In other words, stock trading is not for the naive and inexperienced. Before you go and plunk down money in the stock market you must know your stock trading ABC's or have your lunch ate.

There are several ways to gain the education you need to become a good stock trader. You can take a stock trading course at your local community college or courses given by local business groups. You can load up on stock trading books at Amazon.com or from your local library and study them religiously. You can attend stock investment seminars given in your local area. And of course you can search the Internet where there is tons of valuable information on the subject of stock trading.

But your best bet when it comes to stock trading maybe to turn it all over to a professional. Good stock brokers are worth their weight in gold. With a good stock broker you can avoid the stock trading learning curve which is fraught with pitfalls. Indeed, hiring a broker might be the best course of action because stock trading is a serious business that takes no prisoners.

George Stark is an experienced business writer who holds an MBA degree. Visit www.stocktradingclearinghouse.com for more information on stock trading and investing.