As Uber stock continues slide, 5 questions all first-time investors should ask right now

Friday, as many investors now know, was unlikely to be your pay day, said T.J. van Gerven, the founder of Modern Wealth Builders in Woburn, Mass. He said people planning to invest in Uber should temper their expectations. The most likely to make oodles of cash, should the IPO be successful, are the venture capital investors, executives and financial institutions who have already gotten in on the ground floor, investing in Uber when it was a public company.

If you don’t invest in Uber, what should you be doing with your money instead? Eat your veggies. Van Gerven likens investment choices to the food pyramid that advises a steady diet of whole grains and vegetables, with a sparing amount of fats and sweets at the top. Similarly, retail investors should focus on low-cost, diversified mutual funds and ETFs, he said. Take advantage of your employer’s 401(k) match if you are fortunate to have one. Stock picking is like dessert, he said. “If you want to speculate a little, that’s fine,” he said. But cover your basics.

It’s unlikely to work out that way for everyone else. “If you think you’ll buy Uber and Lyft and hold it, get ready for an extremely bumpy ride,” he said.