One could say I am a novice when it comes to investing but lucky for me I come from a financial background but I have never put the theory into practice. 2017 was a difficult year for me financially at some point I didn’t know where my next paycheck would come from. So I cut down on the nice to have expenses e.g. my gym membership and kept the needs. So Fast forward to January 2018 one of my goals was being financially savvy, I was so determined to make sure that I never experience the feeling of not knowing if I would be able to afford my rent or pay my car’s monthly installment. I know what you all thinking that how can someone with a financial not prepare for unknown in case of emergencies well I guess I always thought that I do not have enough cash to start invest and also I still have black tax to worry about. But all of that changed when I met Lesegisha through a mutual friend, I thank God every day for this moment. My encounter with Lesegisha was very enlightening and this how my investing journey started…
So one of the action plans was to open an easy equities account, of which I did immediately because I like the feeling of being in charge of my finances. Deposited some cash and off I was purchasing my very first shares bear in mind these are long term investments. So I already had the traditional policies with the famous green and blue financial services but I hated the feeling of not knowing what’s happening with the investment accounts I have with them. I also started listening to the Just one lap podcasts with Simon Brown and krista van Heerden, oh my I love them. They are very informative and so so easy to understand.
My journey thus far was to have no debt and invest in shares and continue paying my tax free and RA accounts I am still struggling to save up for an emergency fund because all the other cash goes to my family(Black tax). However I managed to pay off my car “yay” and no I am not getting another one I think I can still go another 10 years on this one. Lol I know what you thinking cheap skate, but I am all about cutting costs and keeping my expenses low. I will get another car if the need arises until than I am good,as long as I can go to point A to B.
I am still learning; shout to the articles Lesegisha keeps sending me and for always answering my questions and taking time to call and explaining concepts to me. I really wish I started earlier to invest with a conscious instead of trusting an institutional financial advisor to make decisions on my behalf but as the saying goes better late than never. I am not where I want to be but I know I will get there. The next step is to keep educating myself and investing more oh and open an emergency fund even if it means I save R100 every month. I’ve been thinking about buying property but also hate being tied down but maybe for investment purpose I can buy and rent it out but that’s a conversation for another day. But I like where my mind is about saving, investing and sharing financial knowledge.