text: how to get rich off of stock? i have $1000 i want to invest. what are my chances of making a small investment triple without paying a big time broker? marketocracy.com is a fun and cool site where you can make mock trades. your friends can join in on a "club" and everyone goes head to head as a mutual fund manager. i think you are given $100k to invest, one stock cannot be more than 25% of the portfolio,while the rest have to be less than 5% or so. it's fun because it allows you to compete just with your friends and the site will tell you if you are beating the s&p500 or not.  check out investors.com if you want good info on how to buy the right stocks at the right time. open an online discount brokerage account like scottrade.com . trades are only $7. that way you won't have to pay the $50+ the big brokers charge.  with good research and a bit of luck you can triple your $1000. i did that with apple. i bought it at $17.   best of luck.