This cheat sheet is designed to provide simple, generally good steps to get started on your investment journey. It will not be optimal but it is much, much better than doing nothing. It assumes you are a young adult starting your career. If you're old this is not the guide for you.

First, take advantage of your company match.

If you work for a company which provides a (401k/403b), make sure to contribute up to your full company match. This is usually calculated as a percent of your paycheck (often 6% but varies by company). If you don't do this step you're wasting a percentage of your paycheck. Your employer can provide information on how to do this.

Set up your 401k/403b to automatically invest contributions in VOO. If VOO is not an option, choose the available low-cost S&P 500 index alternative. Make sure to look at the fund prospectus to check the expense ratio (also sometimes called cost ratio). This should be something lower than 0.1% (10% of 1%), VOO is 0.03% for comparison (3% of 1%). Never sell your low-cost S&P 500 index fund.

Depending on your 401k/403b, the company managing the account may try to sell you on a high-fee option (instead of VOO), which you should avoid. Always check the expense ratio (cost ratio).

Second, max out your IRA.

As a one-time setup, open an individual IRA with Vanguard (Fidelity and Charles Schwab are also good). Choose roth if possible (pay tax on contributions, withdrawals are tax-free), or if you're over the income limits for roth choose traditional (tax-free contributions, pay tax on withdrawals). Any quality provider (Vanguard, Fidelity, Charles Schwab, or others) will have customer service which can help you create your account.

Each year, contribute the yearly max ($6,000 for 2022, but this can change yearly) to your IRA. Do this as early as possible in the year. Invest it into VOO (or the closest alternative as described above). Remember that you can make contributions for the prior year as long as you do so before you file your taxes. Never sell.

Third, max out your 401k/403b.

If you can afford to invest more after maxing out your IRA, increase the percentage of your paycheck you contribute to your 401k/403b. In most cases, your company match applies per-paycheck, so you should spread contributions out evenly so that you hit the max contribution ($20,500 for 2022) on the last paycheck of the year. If you have questions on how to calculate this, your account provider should have customer service you can contact.

These additional investments should also go into VOO. Never sell.

Fourth, backdoor and mega-backdoor roth contributions.

Only explore this step after maxing out your 401k/403b and IRA. This step is more advanced, and if done wrong can cause a large tax bill. But if done correctly, this is a great option to capture even more tax savings. Your 401k/403b or IRA provider may be able to help you with this step, and you should make sure you are absolutely certain of tax implications before attempting any conversions.

Fifth, invest in taxable accounts.

If you have maxed out your tax-advantaged options above and have more to invest you can open a brokerage account with Vanguard, Fidelity, or Charles Schwab. This won't provide any tax benefits, but there are no limits on contributions. Buy more VOO in this brokerage, and never sell it.

Sixth, create an investment website/blog.

Only the most intelligent and good-looking investors should attempt this.