Day #3: Learn About One Investment Instrument
Here’s today’s installment:
A healthy financial life isn’t just about saving and frugality, it’s also about earning more. This is especially true if you only have one source of income, such as employment. Or, if you’re a freelancer, it’s just like having only one client. I’ve always believed that having multiple streams of income can lead to better financial security – if you know what you’re doing.
That’s where today’s task comes in. Before we invest any time or money in something, we need to know as much as we can about it.
Today’s Task: Learn all you can about one investment instrument.
Just pick one, preferably something that you’ve been interested in for a while. It could be stocks, bonds, mutual funds, gold, index funds, forex trading, or real estate. Don’t know what these are? Then, find out. After that, grab every book, read every blog, and ask everyone you can about them. Get multiple sources – at least four. You’ll find that many experts contradict each other so you’ll need to look at their ideas with as many different viewpoints as you can.
Whenever possible, get your information locally. Look for books, web sites, seminars, and experts that can tell you how these investments work in the Philippines.
Apart from traditional investment instruments, putting your money in a business also counts as an investment. This might include providing capital for someone else’s business or starting your own. If you’re tech-inclined, consider online properties such as domain names, web sites, blogs, etc. Be as specific as you can about the ventures you choose so you can narrow your focus.
True, you may not learn all about it in a single day, but at least take the time to gather your learning materials. Whether you buy, download, or borrow it doesn’t matter. Even the simplest action matters, so at the very least you should come up with a “wishlist” of resources.
Why is studying financial instruments important?
First of all, it’s a preventive measure. You’re lessening the risk of being scammed or making bad, uninformed decisions. Also, you’re taking an active part in increasing your income. If you have the misfortune of losing your job for some reason, then you won’t be as worried about providing for yourself or your family. This also means you can spend or save more, hopefully leading to a better quality of life.
What investment instrument are you going to learn about today? Do you have any books or other resources to recommend?
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