Greetings from us!!
We completed 20 long years of our Financial Planning journey on 13th July 2023. This has been an awesome journey for us to learn and unlearn so many things. I would like to pen down 20 important points of my practical learnings during this wonderful journey. All of these have been inspired and experienced by me during interactions with so many people.
- Highest returns by almost all of our clients were made in their profession. May it be a doctor, engineer, salaried, teacher or a businessman. This re-iterates our point to put one’s quality time and energy in one’s profession and not to look at financial markets and products for better returns. Financial products are just a diversifier. If your financial portfolio returns are better than your profession, please change your profession.
- Higher level of savings invested at conservative rate outperform lower level of savings invested at high rate of return. In simple language, 50% savings invested @10% p.a. would outperform 10% savings invested @25% p.a. Don’t look at financial markets and your financial advisor for higher returns—you better stop the leakage at home.
- Don’t put your money in a single basket. Spread your money into different asset classes (asset allocation) and spread within an asset class (diversification). This boring strategy which was true centuries earlier is as much relevant today. This strategy does not increase returns but allows one to sleep well. Follow a concentrated strategy for your career and diversification for your portfolio. However, don’t over diversify.
- Leverage the power of compounding and start early. 10% p.a. over 25 years is not 250% -it is 899%. Investments are subject to market risks but delaying savings and investments are very costly in the long term.
- As your wealth grows, your aspirations increase. The risks to such people’s personal finances move from financial markets to self. Sudden large increase in personal lifestyle is far riskier than market crash.
- Portfolio sizing of any financial instrument is very important. Having too low an allocation to a particular strategy will not make any difference to your overall wealth. And if the allocation is too large, you will not sleep well at night.
- Your personal financial portfolio should be able to maintain your lifestyle and fund your financial goals. If you plan to be super rich, change your career or find a rich father-in-law.
- Financial Portfolio construction process and products are broadly similar for the super-rich and others. Super complicated expensive products are good for consumption (like cars, hotels, vacations etc) but not great as investments. Stay simple on your personal financial portfolio construction as this works wonders and saves costs.
- Evaluate your entire portfolio once a year with a passive benchmark and not with your neighbor’s wealth. You will always underperform your neighbour. Your personal portfolio should be based on your risk profile, financial goals and good night sleep. Nothing else matters. Period.
- Your residential house and jewellery are consumption items based on your lifestyle. Don’t mix them with your investments.
- Fund your children’s education and not their Retirement. Teach them value of money. Do not transfer wealth to a closed family member/ children during one’s lifetime. Have a well drafted WILL to distribute your wealth post one’s death. Control your wealth till death and live respectfully. Plan to live rich and die poor.
- Financial frauds and Mis-selling are done by known trustworthy people. Never mix money and friendship. You lose both.
- Most of us overestimate our abilities in short term and under estimate our abilities in long term. While constructing long term portfolios (5-10 years and above) focus on long term returns and not get swayed by short term underperformances.
- Day trading, derivatives, speculation, margin trading etc are excellent wealth transfer plans to move your wealth to the broker and the government. Stay away. Do not fund your brokers retirement plans.
- If men can come to the kitchen and cook, nothing should stop women from understanding basic financial matters. Money earned by women and their share of ancestral property should be only in their name and control. Human relationship are uncertain but financial savings and security always helps.
- THERE IS NOTHING CALLED FREE LUNCH. Everyone (agent, broker, banker, adviser, media, fin-influencer, institutions etc) eyeing your financial wallet have their selfish interest in their mind. Align your selfish interest with that of the person/institution you are working. It’s not easy but the effort is worth it. The way you select your family doctor, do select your financial doctor.
- Higher qualification, ancestral wealth, high paying job etc does not suggest you will be wealthy forever. History is replete with cases where Super Heroes have become Super Zeroes. It helps to be humble and acknowledge all of us have biases many of which are dangerous to our financial wellbeing. Take guidance from unbiased advisors.
- We live in a world with more UpToDate information from so many sources including social media. Also, execution of financial transaction can be done through so many technological devices very easily. Do remember the line “Investing is Simple, but Not Easy”.
- Automating investment strategies (especially for market linked investments) are good way for most of us who have a problem about postponing investments. Reducing the risk of market timing and removing the emotion out of investing are other wonderful advantages.
- Always focus on the foundations of any financial plan. Have a plan where one has No loans (or manageable loans), emergency money (parked in ultra-safe liquid instruments) covering next 12-24 months of mandatory expenses, sufficient medical insurance to cover self and dependents and pure term insurance to secure the family’s financial future.
We would take this opportunity to thank almighty God for the opportunity, my mentors and teachers who have guided me, my clients who have reposed so much faith in our expertise, my current and past team who have been the back bone to implement my strategies, my family especially my late parents for believing in me, financial institutions for the products, friends in the industry who challenge me, financial regulators for the process and financial media for the up-to-date information.
While we love our client portfolios to get high returns, however, the best kick has been when my clients achieve and fulfill their financial goals. We look forward for your support and guidance in the years to come. We are as passionate in helping our clients reach their financial goals as we were 20 years back.
Finally, our approach of good quality unbiased advice will not make our clients Super Rich. However, we would definitely help our clients to focus on their profession (to get high returns), family (to get emotional support) and passions/hobbies (to recharge your energy).
God bless you and your loved ones!!
Naveen Julian Rego – CFP
SEBI Registered Investment Adviser
Reg. No. INA 200004250 & BASL ID: 1485
Mob: 98455 57582
Disclaimer:
- Investment in the securities market is subject to market risks. Read all the related documents carefully before investing.
- Registration granted by SEBI, membership of BASL and certification from NISM in no way guarantee performance of the intermediary or provide any assurance of returns to investors.
- Past performance of any asset class is not an indicator of future performance.
- The above are broad suggestions and not Investment Advice as individual cases might differ.