[amerkhalid]

100% of my savings are in index ETF or funds.

But I have a small yearly budget (less than 5%) for gambling with stocks. I enjoy picking stocks and reading financial news. I got lucky with a few picks but mostly it is a wash. This is a hobby for me, just requires a lot of discipline to not go above yearly budget.

As for how I pick stocks; financial news, regular news, if I like the company & its CEO. I definitely read up on CEO's biographies. Finally, I would do financial analysis, mostly avoid companies with a lot of debt, or very high PEs.