[RT Wolf]

I believe that the best returns are gained over the long-term, usually with holding periods of a year or more. We're having a conversation about this stuff over in the thread called Any Value Investors in here?

The Stock market is a fickle mistress, I would recommend getting as much knowledge about it as you can. If you treat her like a casino, that's how she'll be. But if you treat her right, she can make you rich. Read lots of books and the internets, find out about different investing strategies and pick which one sounds good to you.

If you'd like a quick primer on the stock market (to just give you an idea of what's out there), lemme know.

Edit: The reason I recommend learning about different styles/strategies for investing is that you get different views. For you, though, is this all your investment money? Do you have other investments? A sound financial strategy is the key to never having to worry excessively about your money again.