He navigated to the TD Ameritrade login page. Since the transition to Charles Schwab was well underway, he made sure his credentials were handy. He typed his username, cleared the two-factor authentication on his phone, and the dashboard flickered to life. The sea of green and red numbers usually intimidated him, but he had a plan.

In the Symbol box, Leo typed the ticker. As he hit enter, the current bid and ask prices flashed. The market was live, and the numbers danced.

He glanced at the Expiration. Day only. If the stock didn't hit his price by the closing bell, the order would vanish. That was fine by him.

First, he moved his mouse to the Trade tab at the top of the screen. A dropdown menu appeared, and he clicked on Stocks & ETFs. A clean, white order ticket slid onto the screen, waiting for his command.

Leo sat in his ergonomic chair, the glow of two monitors illuminating his face in the quiet of his home office. After weeks of researching green energy trends, he was ready. Today was the day he would buy his first shares of an EV charging company.