We are closer than ever to getting our financial life in order here on The Takeaway. This is week nine of our series, Do It Yourself Bailout. Since the beginning of the series Takeaway contributor Beth Kobliner has tackled our trickiest money issues in order to help us all get on sound financial footing. We have talked about how to trick yourself into saving more money and whether you should prioritize your retirement savings over saving for your kids’ college, among many other money questions.

Hopefully, once you’ve implemented all those money saving tips, you’ll have some money left over to start investing. Beth helps us figure out the basics of investing: where you should put your money, what kinds of risks are reasonable and why it might be safer to put at least some of your money in the stock market rather than just socking it away in a savings account or under a mattress. Tell us about your first experiences in the stock market. Did you pick safe investments, that have grown slowly?