Your goals, timescales and attitue to risk should all have an influence on your investment strategy. For example, if you've got 17 years to build up a university fund for your child, it's likely you will want to adopt a growth strategy, picking investments which have the potential to significantly increase in value over the long term. In contrast, if you are about to retire and want to supplement your pension with your investments, a cautious income strategy where you pick less volatile, income generating investments might suit you better. More often, your situation may not be as clear cut as that, so a balanced strategy will benefit from both growth and income.
Different types of investments have different risk profiles. As an
investor, you'll come across the terms 'risk' and 'risk profile' a lot.
Nothing's guaranteed, but you can aim to manage risk by investing for the long term and by diversifying. It's also sensible to pay money into your investment regularly, rather than all in one go. This can help smooth out the highs and lows of the market and cut the risk of making big losses.
To get an indication of your risk appetite, take our Client Suitability Test.