We are in a new year & I guess some of you have decided to finally take your first step to invest. The only problem is, you think that it is too complicated & you don’t know how to invest, correct? If yes, then this post is definitely for you to kickstart your investment journey with 3 simple steps. I admit, sometimes investing can be complicated especially since there are so many platforms or options out there for you to choose from. You have the fear of choosing the wrong ones & ended up making a loss in it or getting your money completely wiped out. It is definitely very common especially when it comes to a new investor like you.
The thing about investing is, it can be really hard or it can be really simple. It depends on how simple you want it to be or how complicated you want things to be. Personally, for me, I prefer my investments to be simple & in the past 1 year, I have been investing actively in platforms that are simpler compared to what I used to do when I invested in direct stocks. At current, I am still investing in stocks, but I am slowly switching my investments into index funds, Robo-advisors & other platforms. The reason is so that I can simplify my investments & focus on my other ongoing projects. During this 1 year of investing from stocks into other simpler platforms, I realized the time I spent on monitoring my stocks & investments became lesser since it is all automated. With that, not only do I have more time but it also simplifies my investing process compared to how I do it in the past where I had to study individual stocks & which can be really complicated & time-consuming too.
For new potential investors like you who may want to invest but have no idea where to start, I recommend you try investing in a simpler investment platform as a start but first, below are the 3 simple steps that you can take to kickstart your investing journey.
Step 1: Set A Small Amount To Invest
It can be as low as RM50 or even less. It really depends on the amount you are willing to start with but I personally think that RM50 is the best amount to start. RM50 is actually a reasonable amount to start with especially if you compare it to a meal that you might spend during your date or even your weekend meals with friends. But if you think that it is too much, you can even start with RM10 too. Once you have decided how much to invest each month, you can move on to the next step.
Step 2: Survey The Investment Platforms
The first rule is, you have to check if these platforms are approved by the Securities Commission of Malaysia. You should only invest in platforms that are approved by SC of Malaysia to protect your investments. Other platforms that are regulated by other countries are not advisable as your money is not protected by the SC of Malaysia. The second rule is to find platforms that can meet your investment goal or appetite. Mutual Fund, Robo-Advisor, HelloGold, P2P Financing, or other simple platforms can be part of the platforms you can survey. If you want to look into something more simple, look into investing in Robo-advisors & all you have to do is fill up the questionnaire & you are good to go.
Step 3: Invest
Now we are on the most important step where you finally make your first step to invest. After you finally take your first step, what’s next? As someone that believes that one should not put all your eggs into 1 basket, I think that you may need to invest in at least 2-3 platforms or portfolios to spread your risk. You may repeat this process again by surveying which platforms you want to invest next, or you can stay invested in the same platforms but invest in a different portfolio. After you have done all those steps, all you have to do is to automate those processes by setting up direct debit so your money can be automatically deducted from your bank account. When you are comfortable investing more, you can adjust your investment in the investment platforms. To recommended timeline that you should commit for those investments is at least 10 years unless something unfortunate happens. The longer you keep the more return you can make from compounding interest & long-term returns.
Conclusion:
With all these 3 simple steps, you are good to start your first investment journey in 2023. There won’t be any other excuse for you not to start investing anymore since those steps are extremely easy to begin with. Don’t forget to monitor your investment from time to time. There may be a possibility where your investment is in negative but do not worry as you are investing over a long period of time & it will definitely be profitable over the long run. Do not sell it no matter what unless it is urgently needed to ensure your investment is profitable over the long run.
OSS!
You can also check out my latest YouTube video on Why Do You Need Financial Planning?
