<prompt> Human: And I am terrified. I know savings isnt a retirement plan, but I have an honest to goodness phobia of putting my money on the market. I think I understand rationally that I should be investing and it is the smartest thing for my money. I have zero knowledge, and lot of anxiety about it. Im pretty frugal and spend next to nothing so I can continue to save, but truly wish I had a better strategy than just sitting on it.  <response>: Have you considered your anxiety is a result of having zero knowledge? Consider reading the wiki and sidebar. First, if you have some sort of 401k with match, you should invest in that up to the match. Your company just throws free money at you with this. So you shouldnt feel anxious at all. Then you max an IRA. If you dodge taxation on the investment, you cant beat that. Yes the market may seem scary, but the tertiary benefits outweigh the potential risks. If you play it safe with Vanguard target date funds, or ETFs theres not much to worry about. 