Noah Kerner, CEO of Acorns, says fear of investing comes from stress, shame, and feeling excluded from money, not from lack of knowledge. Kerner experienced this himself. Despite working as a bank teller at 17 and interning on a municipal bond trading floor in college, he avoided investing for most of his twenties. That delay cost him a decade of compounding growth.
Acorns has helped users save and invest more than $35 billion, often by starting with spare change. Kerner says the company tackles investing fear by making the first step small enough that people find it hard to refuse. He recommends opening an Acorns account and investing at least $5 to receive a $5 bonus investment.
Kerner draws a distinction between patience and prediction. He warns that prediction markets, sports betting, and buy now, pay later services pull people toward quick wins. The better approach, he says, is to be boring with your money.