My daughter Rachel was in D.C. this past weekend attending a conference. So my wife Cecily and I hoofed it down from Baltimore and grabbed dinner with her and our son Nick.

They started reminiscing about how back in the day you had just three TV channels. When the WB became available, they were ecstatic.

They laughed. It seems so long ago, they said. “Three channels. How did we stand it?!”

I kept quiet. Let them appreciate the perspective that comes with “old” age. (Both are in their early 30s.) I even refrained from bringing up the prehistoric days of black and white TV, wavy pictures and no remotes.

You don’t miss what you don’t have, of course. Three channels were the norm for so long.

Nobody noticed how limited the choice was.

Now it seems rather pathetic, doesn’t it?

The “Pathetic” Phase of Stock Investing

A similar dynamic is going on right now in another realm.

And as limited choice gives way to a much larger array of choices, it will be just as impactful as TV’s blossoming of choice and channels.

Maybe even more impactful because it offers everyday Americans a new way to increase their financial well-being.

I’m referring to equity investing.

The equity portfolios of everyday Americans are undergoing a metamorphosis. And it’s just as radical – and liberating – as cable was for TV.

For decades, it was about the “big three” stock exchanges: the Dow, S&P 500 and Nasdaq.

This period was characterized by the walling off of 98% of Americans from investing in private companies – a market that made dozens of well-connected investors very rich during this time.

Those walls are now coming down.

We’re in Phase 3. We have two more phases to go until private-share investing turns into a global, liquid and commonplace practice. Let’s review each phase.

Phase 1: Reward Crowdfunding (20 Million People)