I remember my days as part of an undergraduate program in computer science in the late ’80s / early 90’ at Baroda. In those days, this branch itself was new and I had no visibility into the kind of career I could hope for. There were no jobs through campus. Since my father was working in the public sector, I had a reasonably good idea about life there. I opted for a few public sector exams, and cleared written exams but did not succeed in interviews. With not much luck in government jobs, I was forced to explore opportunities elsewhere. After 3 months of struggle, I landed a job as a software developer in a private sector company in Mumbai.
Living within Means
Coming from a family with limited means, I had kept tight control of my expenses. While my salary was not high, I could save a major portion of it by cutting corners. With those savings, I could provide some financial support to my parents for my sister’s marriage and the purchase of a house.
Knowledge about Investment Opportunities
Since my first job was in Mumbai, I got exposure to investing in IPO, debentures and purchase of stocks from the secondary market. I would use hearsay ideas and tips to invest money with the hope to make quick bucks. Occasionally, I would do day trading. It was gambling at a low scale in the name of investment. The investments were largely haphazard and not aligned with any structured plan. I do not believe I made money at that time but getting a good understanding of investment options early in my life was helpful.
Experience Today or Save for Future
I got an opportunity to move to the US with a job in hand. With decent earnings, I revisited my expectations from life. While I would still save, life experience became a priority and that led to multiple travels domestically in the US and Europe.
Education is the Best Investment
My company was not sponsoring higher education for employees. I chose to spend USD 40,000 from my pocket to eke out an MBA degree from a reasonably good college. The Y2K crisis led to mergers and acquisitions. I was laid off only to encash my MBA degree to get a job at one of the best IT consulting companies in the world. The best part of the US is that layoff is not a stigma. You are judged at your face value.
Taking advantage of Company Benefits
I am by nature inquisitive and try to explore and leverage the benefits available in terms of employer contribution and tax savings. Hence investments in 401 K (Contribution from Employer, Tax Savings), Roth IRA (Tax Savings) and ESPP (Discounted pricing) were low-hanging fruits for me.
Do Not Procrastinate
I am a little obsessed with leveraging company benefits as soon as I can. I was doing these investments from day one of my eligibility. I believe quicker financial decisions help in the faster accumulation of wealth. Beyond these tax-saving investments, my large bets were on the high-growth technology companies which saw boom and bust around Y2K.
Diversification is Important
In 2003, I returned to India for good and took a job in an IT Services company. I moved the majority of my financial assets to India and left some in the US for diversification. Back in India, the investment strategy did not change a lot. A large part of the investments continued to be in the Large Cap individual stocks.
If You Cannot Beat the Market, Join it
Then the Financial subprime mortgage crisis happened in 2007 and that triggered a change in my investment strategy. Over time, my portfolio transitioned from individual stocks to actively managed Mutual Funds to passive Index Funds.
Call of Conscience
It was 2018. After long deliberation, I decided to take up something which I am passionate about and that is how my Financial Advisory Company “FinMyn” was born. Four years later, there are no regrets.
Life Lessons
When was the last time you played a game with your kids, took your spouse for a dinner at a quiet restaurant, took your aged parents for a stroll in a park, or went for a family trip to an offbeat place? Family matters.
Would you like to serve a meal to a destitute around you or take children of your house help to watch a cricket match in the stadium or teach underprivileged kids in your village, support the education of your financially struggling brother’s children, or make an orphan a member of your family? Happiness is all around us, it is for us to grab.
If you believe, you are missing Life experiences, it may be time to change your priorities.
The writer is a SEBI Registered Adviser and Founder of FinMyn (https://finmyn.com). He provides Fee-Only Financial Planning and Investment Advisory services.
He has advised many clients in India, the US, Europe, the Middle East, South East Asia and Australia.
To know more about him, click on https://finmyn.com/about/.
Nice one… from your heart..