Hirak writes, “I am a 17-year-old, and I want to learn and start investing. Help me out”. It is wonderful to see young people serious about investing and money management. We are honoured when they ask us about it.
We do not know the cash flow situation of Hirak. Does he earn part-time or full-time? Thankfully at 17, there are higher priorities, so we will focus on those. This allows us to write a “what advice would you give to your 17-year old self” kind of article.
1. Make use of the golden period: At 17, you have about a 10-12 year golden period to learn new skills (formally/informally) and make yourself employable. So plan for that even if you cannot afford formal education, push yourself to learn new things.
2. Take a long term view of life: You may perhaps have a side-hustle going for your immediate needs. While this is perfectly fine, think beyond the odd job here and there and develop a truly long term view of your life. What do you wish to do in 5,10,15 years? How are you going to get there?
3. It takes money to make money: Many of us make the mistake that high returns will make us rich. You can get a 25% return over the next ten years, but the final amount would not be significant if you did not invest enough. So all the time and effort you can spare should focus on increasing your income and ensuring it stays at that level. Investing is always a secondary task that should be automated to minimize time wasted.
Join 32,000+ readers and get free money management solutions delivered to your inbox! Subscribe to get posts via email! (Link takes you to our email sign-up form)
🔥Enjoy massive discounts on our robo-advisory tool & courses! 🔥
4. Do not judge success in terms of success! Never define success in terms of salary or education or belongings even success! “Success is nothing more than the progressive realization of a worthy ideal.” – Earl Nightingale. As long as you have a goal and are striving towards it, you are successful.
5 Happiness is not a destination (or an object). It is a journey: The above reasoning applies to happiness as well. No gadget can make you happy; No amount of money can make you happy. Happiness is productive engagement. It is going to sleep instantly after a hard day’s work with no time to worry about whether we are happy or not!
6 Balance is the essence of life: Money is there to be spent. When we “save” money, we do so to spend in the near future. When we “invest” money, we do so to spend in the distant future. Extreme behaviour like saving/spending all our money for immediate needs or investing all our money to “build wealth” is wrong.
We have to balance our present and future needs as best as we can. We will make mistakes in the process, and that is perfectly fine. Like success and happiness, marriage/relationships, finding a balance between our needs and wants is also a journey!
All the above can be summarised as:
Put your head down, work hard consistently without expectations.
Now let us consider investing. When young, it is important to tell ourselves that investment is capital that is not required for the next ten years. This means that unless there is an emergency (unexpected expense), we should not touch this amount.
So we would recommend Hirak to first “save” for his short-term needs – a mobile’ a DSLR etc., using a simple bank recurring deposit. The remaining amount (if any) can be “invested” in a Sensex or Nifty index fund. Recommendations are available here: Handpicked List of Mutual Funds Oct-Dec 2021 (PlumbLine).
After Hirak starts earning full-time (assuming he is not at present), he can consult our free e-book: Re-assemble Step by step money management basics to manage his money in a structured manner. We wish him all the best.
🔥Enjoy massive discounts on our courses, robo-advisory tool and exclusive investor circle! 🔥& join our community of 7000+ users!
Use our Robo-advisory Tool for a start-to-finish financial plan! ⇐ More than 2,500 investors and advisors use this!
Track your mutual funds and stock investments with this Google Sheet!
We also publish monthly equity mutual funds, debt and hybrid mutual funds, index funds and ETF screeners and momentum, low-volatility stock screeners.
- Do you have a comment about the above article? Reach out to us on Twitter: @freefincal or @pattufreefincal
- Have a question? Subscribe to our newsletter using the form below.
- Hit 'reply' to any email from us! We do not offer personalized investment advice. We can write a detailed article without mentioning your name if you have a generic question.
Join 32,000+ readers and get free money management solutions delivered to your inbox! Subscribe to get posts via email! (Link takes you to our email sign-up form)
About The Author
Dr M. Pattabiraman(PhD) is the founder, managing editor and primary author of freefincal. He is an associate professor at the Indian Institute of Technology, Madras. He has over ten years of experience publishing news analysis, research and financial product development. Connect with him via Twitter(X), Linkedin, or YouTube. Pattabiraman has co-authored three print books: (1) You can be rich too with goal-based investing (CNBC TV18) for DIY investors. (2) Gamechanger for young earners. (3) Chinchu Gets a Superpower! for kids. He has also written seven other free e-books on various money management topics. He is a patron and co-founder of “Fee-only India,” an organisation promoting unbiased, commission-free investment advice.Our flagship course! Learn to manage your portfolio like a pro to achieve your goals regardless of market conditions! ⇐ More than 3,000 investors and advisors are part of our exclusive community! Get clarity on how to plan for your goals and achieve the necessary corpus no matter the market condition is!! Watch the first lecture for free! One-time payment! No recurring fees! Life-long access to videos! Reduce fear, uncertainty and doubt while investing! Learn how to plan for your goals before and after retirement with confidence.
Our new course! Increase your income by getting people to pay for your skills! ⇐ More than 700 salaried employees, entrepreneurs and financial advisors are part of our exclusive community! Learn how to get people to pay for your skills! Whether you are a professional or small business owner who wants more clients via online visibility or a salaried person wanting a side income or passive income, we will show you how to achieve this by showcasing your skills and building a community that trusts and pays you! (watch 1st lecture for free). One-time payment! No recurring fees! Life-long access to videos!
Our new book for kids: “Chinchu Gets a Superpower!” is now available!
Must-read book even for adults! This is something that every parent should teach their kids right from their young age. The importance of money management and decision making based on their wants and needs. Very nicely written in simple terms. - Arun.Buy the book: Chinchu gets a superpower for your child!
How to profit from content writing: Our new ebook is for those interested in getting side income via content writing. It is available at a 50% discount for Rs. 500 only!
Do you want to check if the market is overvalued or undervalued? Use our market valuation tool (it will work with any index!), or get the Tactical Buy/Sell timing tool!
We publish monthly mutual fund screeners and momentum, low-volatility stock screeners.
About freefincal & its content policy. Freefincal is a News Media Organization dedicated to providing original analysis, reports, reviews and insights on mutual funds, stocks, investing, retirement and personal finance developments. We do so without conflict of interest and bias. Follow us on Google News. Freefincal serves more than three million readers a year (5 million page views) with articles based only on factual information and detailed analysis by its authors. All statements made will be verified with credible and knowledgeable sources before publication. Freefincal does not publish paid articles, promotions, PR, satire or opinions without data. All opinions will be inferences backed by verifiable, reproducible evidence/data. Contact information: letters {at} freefincal {dot} com (sponsored posts or paid collaborations will not be entertained)
Connect with us on social media
- Twitter @freefincal
- Subscribe to our YouTube Videos
- Posts feed via Feedburner.
Our publications
You Can Be Rich Too with Goal-Based Investing
Published by CNBC TV18, this book is meant to help you ask the right questions and seek the correct answers, and since it comes with nine online calculators, you can also create custom solutions for your lifestyle! Get it now.Gamechanger: Forget Startups, Join Corporate & Still Live the Rich Life You Want
This book is meant for young earners to get their basics right from day one! It will also help you travel to exotic places at a low cost! Get it or gift it to a young earner.Your Ultimate Guide to Travel
This is an in-depth dive into vacation planning, finding cheap flights, budget accommodation, what to do when travelling, and how travelling slowly is better financially and psychologically, with links to the web pages and hand-holding at every step. Get the pdf for Rs 300 (instant download)