If you decide to invest in company stocks in the industry you work in, pay attention to workplace clues about the industry's health.
"You know when hiring is happening, what the morale is inside the company," D'Arruda says. "Back in the boardroom, before they come out and give a smiling face to the press, you've seen what the real attitude is."
But don't get overconfident of your insider's knowledge. Place says she's seen many professionals do this.
"They think that they know the markets and will make a ton of money," Place says. "But, unfortunately, a lot of them haven't done their homework. They don't diversify as well as they should, so they end up losing a lot of money."