Her Social Security number for tax reporting purposes. Employment: Her current job and income level.

Maya’s first discovery was that she could not simply walk into Johnson & Johnson's headquarters or call them up to buy a stock. She needed a middleman called a brokerage.

After reading a few reviews, she chose a reputable, commission-free online brokerage. She clicked the button to open an individual taxable brokerage account. Chapter 2: The Setup

Looking inside her bathroom cabinet, her eyes landed on a familiar red-and-white logo: Johnson & Johnson. She decided that very morning that she would become a shareholder, even if it was just for a single share.

Two days later, a notification popped up on Maya's phone: Your funds are ready to trade.

Maya took a deep breath and clicked the big green button labeled . A small order window popped up, asking her to fill in the specifics of her trade. She had to make two quick decisions:

A satisfying chime sounded from her laptop, accompanied by a green checkmark on the screen. The message read: Order Filled! You bought 1 share of JNJ at $162.50.