I remember that first moment I heard the concept of risk-adjusted returns. In my latest article, The house always wins you'll know my journey into investing began with a bet on sports. While I had to learn the hard lesson that betting on sports might not be the most profitable Return on Investment so I began looking at other possibilities that could bring in steady cash for my investments.

Today, I'd like to share some of my suggestions to make you a better alternative investment ....

1: Invest in fantastic people and teams before "the next great idea."

It requires more than just a brilliant idea to create a successful company or make an investment worth the investment. In most cases there are elements of the investment argument that will be proven correct, while some may prove incorrect. It is important to know how an investment group is able to overcome and adapt. Do they claw, scratch and fight when they see things going against them or do they accept defeat and go away? This is typically the difference between an investor that receives a return or losing money on an investment.

2 Invest with partners who are willing to play the game

Take a look. Are you willing to make a bet on a company idea, idea or even an asset, but the person or team responsible for the project won't put any of their personal money into the transaction? Be cautious in this situation. Do not focus too much upon the sum of money but rather on the amount in relation to capacity. If I'm backing someone with $100k in potential to invest, is it possible that they are willing to invest $25k to $50k of their own money to deal with you? This does two aspects: (i) it proves that they are genuinely committed to the investment (ii) in the event that things don't occur as expected and they are determined to try to salvage the most value they can.

3 Don't invest in concepts or companies or projects you don't fully understand.

It's as simple as that. If you're not able to describe the investment to someone who isn't familiar with the investment, then you're not understanding the concept. It's easy for investors to get enthralled by an investment opportunity that sounds appealing and the prospect of a massive yield from your money. Be curious and attentive and be patient to answer all of your questions. An investment professional who is trustworthy will not make you invest until you're completely comfortable.

4 - Diversify Diversify Diversify

This is a time-tested concept that is largely derived from the traditional bond and stocks however, it is applicable to all kinds of investment. It's normal to be able to make investments in something that you already know about. I've seen this quite often when it comes to real property investors. They own every penny they own in the form of real estate, and they are Real Estate Agents. If the market is down it is not just your investments affected, but also the income you earn from your job also affected. If you intend to concentrate on one sector, you should diversify your portfolio by location and asset types. You can easily forget in a down economy that losing 5% when everybody else has a loss of 20%, is excellent too.