Three myths about investing (Part three)
To continue the conversation around investing and to de-taboo the topic of personal finance, I’m sharing something else I thought I knew about investing.
Myth: I don’t have enough time to manage my money!
To top off my negativity and uncertainty towards investing, I convinced myself that I didn’t have enough time to manage my money long-term. Even if I managed to quell my risk aversion, find a financial advisor, or make some sense of all the investing information available online, I would need to devote myself to studying the stock market, keeping apprised of global geopolitics and fiscal policy, then conducting my own decision-analysis to action that knowledge. When I first attempted to purchase an ETF in my newly opened investment account, the decision to select “limit order” or “market order” stopped me in my tracks. I just wouldn’t have time to learn the language of trading, give myself crash courses in economics, finance, history and political science, or anticipate and optimize personal financial decision-making, 24/7.
Reality: Managing your money doesn't have to take a ton of time. My initial approach of selecting individual stocks and mutual funds would, indeed, have required time and effort. I would've had to decide which ones to purchase, when and how to purchase them at the lowest cost, and when to sell them so that I could maximize my gains.
However, a robo-advisor service allows me to "set-it-and-forget-it." After answering several questions about my financial goals, experience and sources of income upon opening my account, and then monitoring its performance periodically, I did absolutely nothing! The algorithm adjusts my portfolio based on market performance, and I just sit back, relax (and print money). If my financial goals or circumstances change, I can retake the questionnaire, and the robo-advisor will recalibrate my portfolio and investing algorithm to better address my current needs. Wasat also uses a similar model so you can sit back, relax and watch your money grow.
And if you still have questions, doubts or concerns about investing, we want to hear from you! Post them down below, and Wasat will feature our most common or widespread ones in a forthcoming post. We’ll also take them into consideration as we continue to build an interface and product offering best suited to you.
