Hola everyone!
In my previous piece, I spoke about what parents must do for their daughters. I don’t know if my words will reach many, but in this article, I want to educate young girls and boys on savings and investments. No one knows what the future has planned for you if you don’t start thinking about it now. Everyone might now be thinking, “Yeh kya gyaan dene aai hai?” (What knowledge has she come to give?), but the truth is, many won’t even realize this until they reach their 30s—just like me. If people think I am a fool, maybe I am. But the truth is, I had zero guidance. Not just me, but my brothers too. We started investing in our early 30s. Maybe if someone had guided us earlier, we would have saved a lot more. My parents were very much against investment due to a lack of knowledge, and here we are, broke—just like many of us may be in the future.
I’m not trying to curse anyone, but if we don’t start now, that day may come soon for all of us. I intend to educate you to start investing so that women and men can plan and live the lives they want to in the future.
What to do to save money?
Save… Invest… Repeat! This is the only mantra you can follow to earn and grow your money. But the next question would be, How? Right? Start by studying mutual funds and SIPs (Systematic Investment Plans). Yes, people will say it’s similar to the stock market and you will lose money when the stock market crashes—blah blah. True, if you invest in stocks without knowledge. But mutual funds or SIPs are handled by managers from the industry who know when to pull out the money to minimize losses. And these losses are temporary because the stock market tends to grow over time.
SIP Investment Calculation and Future Plan
If you invest in an SIP every month for 10 years—let’s say 5,000 Rs per month at a 12% interest rate—you will have invested a total of 6 lakhs over 10 years, and your estimated return will be 5.61 lakhs. This means you saved a total of 11.61 lakhs. Similarly, if this continues for 20 years, you will have invested 12 lakhs, and your estimated return will be 37.95 lakhs, with total savings of 49.95 lakhs. With SIP and mutual fund Investment the returns will be way better than Fixed deposit anytime.
I’ve shown you calculations based on a basic amount that anyone can start with, but as your salary grows, you should increase the amount and set a target to make crores. This way, you can safeguard your future and retirement while enjoying a carefree life. I’m not saying to invest your entire salary, but investing 10-20% is not a big deal. So, plan for a better future now, so that when you get old, you don’t have to depend on your children for your basic needs and lifestyle.
If we look back 10-15 years, investing in mutual funds wasn’t easy because of all the documentation needed, but now, with growing technology, everything is possible online. So don’t just invest blindly—ask your friends who are CAs or financial experts for advice, do your research on which plans are good, which ones have low risk and give better returns, and kickstart your investment journey from there.
I’m sure about one thing—you may feel like I’m simply promoting mutual funds or SIPs right now, but if you follow what I say, mark my words! You’ll thank me 15-20 years from now. With that, I close my gyaan with the hope that all of you who read this will live the life you want.
Wish you all good luck on your future journey!
P.S. Investing in mutual funds and SIPs is subject to market risk, so invest wisely at your own risk.