My investment journey: from product-driven to process-driven

Published: March 20, 2022 at 6:00 am

In this edition of the reader story, we meet 30-year old Phanindra. He explains how his style of money management changed from buying interesting or apparently useful products to building a robust goal-based investment strategy. This is the 31st such article published here.

About this series: I am grateful to readers for sharing intimate details about their financial lives for the benefit of readers. Some of the previous editions are linked at the bottom of this article. You can also access the full reader story archive.

Opinions published in reader stories need not represent the views of freefincal or its editors. We must appreciate multiple solutions to the money management puzzle and empathise with diverse views. Articles are typically not checked for grammar unless necessary to convey the right meaning to preserve the tone and emotions of the writers.

If you would like to contribute to the DIY community in this manner, send your audits to freefincal AT Gmail dot com. They can be published anonymously if you so desire.

Please note: We welcome such articles from young earners who have just started their investing journey. See, for example, this piece by a 29-year old: How I track financial goals without worrying about returns.


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We have also started a new “mutual fund success stories” series. This is the first edition: How mutual funds helped me reach financial independence. Now over to the author.

Hello readers, first of all, I would like to thank Pattu sir for providing a platform to share my investment journey with fellow DIY investors. My journey is identical to scores of Indians: complete a BE and join a tech company.

My parents never wanted anything from me after I started earning. All they said was, “Unlike us, you are in a position where you have some extra money each month. Be wise and frugal with it. Learn how to save it. Do not try to fit in with others using money”

Thankfully, I was frugal by nature but for almost six years after I started earning, I did not learn about saving or investing in a structured manner. I made the standard and usual money mistakes based on office chit-chat: Buy products only for tax savings – endowment policies, Ulips, ELSS funds, and NPS too!

It is by chance I stumbled upon freefincal three years ago and realised the mistakes I was making. I read Re-assemble Step by step money management basics (free e-bok) and rigorously follow the steps. I then joined the goal-based portfolio management course and developed an investment strategy.

The biggest mistake I made was chasing after products: for tax savings or tax-free gains; for better returns without understanding terms and conditions etc. I recognised the benefits of a process-driven approach.

I listed my goals and tagged my investments to them. Each time I invest, I invest for that goal not for X or Y return and not for saving tax. Once we focus on the corpus necessary for our goal, we can happily ignore fluctuating returns or market developments. This process-driven approach has given me peace of mind.

I got married two years ago. My wife is a reporter. We have not yet decided about children but realise we have to do so quickly. For now, we only have one goal – financial freedom.

Since I followed goal-based investing only two years ago, about 70% of my money is in EPF and some small amounts in NPS and PPF. I only keep the NPS and PPF accounts alive each year. I got rid of my endowment policies and ULIPs after reading re-assemble and got a term insurance cover.

I prefer to focus on investing as much as possible in equity funds.  “Invest as much as possible each month without getting bogged down with SIPs” is another useful piece of advice from Pattu sir.

Last year I switched to the new tax regime and bade goodbye to section 80C.

I like hybrid funds and use Mirae Asset Equity Hybrid Fund and ICICI Multi-asset fund (roughly same weights).

Our goal is to holiday abroad at least once in three years. So we save a small amount for this each year in an RD.

Reader stories published earlier

As regular readers may know, we publish a personal financial audit each December – this is the 2020 edition: How my retirement portfolio performed in 2020. We asked regular readers to share how they review their investments and track financial goals.

These published audits have had a compounding effect on readers. If you would like to contribute to the DIY community in this manner, send your audits to freefincal AT Gmail. They could be published anonymously if you so desire.

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About The Author

Pattabiraman editor freefincalDr 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.
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Most investor problems can be traced to a lack of informed decision-making. We made bad decisions and money mistakes when we started earning and spent years undoing these mistakes. Why should our children go through the same pain? What is this book about? As parents, what would it be if we had to groom one ability in our children that is key not only to money management and investing but to any aspect of life? My answer: Sound Decision Making. So, in this book, we meet Chinchu, who is about to turn 10. What he wants for his birthday and how his parents plan for it, as well as teaching him several key ideas of decision-making and money management, is the narrative. What readers say!
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