Investing
I have come to realise rather late in the life the true meaning of noun "investment". The last 25 years have seen me being actively involved in our business. I haven't taken our business to dizzying heights but I have managed to survive so far. Being a typical middle class brahmin, I did not have any great ambition and my risk taking ability too was very limited.
Our business grew exponentially in the initial few years. The Mirus film printer started yielding dividends very soon. Expenses were low and on retrospection one feels the income was very comfortable. We also tried our hand at printing activities. This proved to be a major debacle as we lost a lot of money in the failed offset venture and later in the Canon digital printer. Both the plans were ill conceived hence a very high price had to be paid for this. This was about 15-16 years ago. I should have then sat down and charted our my strengths and weaknesses rather than blindly trusting my instincts. As a consequence of not tackling the issue in a positive way, I became very conservative to the point of being pessimistic about the future. Business was growing but at a very sluggish pace. During the past 15 years I really started saving. Earlier most of our earnings (comfortable yet meagre as they were), were ploughed back in the business). I had started my PPF account about 25 years ago but never really contributed any substantial sums to it. I was risk averse so mutual funds and equity were never thought of initially. The usual avenues of FDs, RDs, PPF and ludicrously LIC policies! About 16 years ago Mr. Katdare from our society sought an appointment with me and was able to convince me about mutual funds. I was intrigued and started investing in a cautious manner. Vidula too started investing. Later ICICIDirect happened and I started investing in direct equity on my own, occasionally consulting Suhas kaka. Several MFs were redeemed, new ones started. All this while my PPF continued to grow and LIC policy premiums were duly honoured. In 2018 after wading in the investment waters for about 15-16 years I decided to shift to a PMS. I now hope that this agency is able to deliver.
The important question
The most important question plaguing my mind is whether I have really understood "investing". All these years I have been looking out for options to maximise my "monetary gains". But what about my personal growth? What about my mind? What about acquiring a new skill? I have scored a zero on this account. I have still not really figured out my strengths and weaknesses. I will have to think hard about the immediate future as it looks very dim for now. We are charting unknown territory as our business has metamorphosed. The big question is do I really want to continue what I am doing? It is high time I got out of my comfort zone. The question of savings and money seems to have been sorted out, at least for now. I will have to think of some very low capital business idea and start working on it immediately.'
This is food for thought. This requires careful, planned, goal oriented action. That too quick.
The important lesson is one has to keep investing in oneself. Investment need not be just monetary. If you do not evolve with changing times, you will die soon. This is the most important lesson for me.
Our business grew exponentially in the initial few years. The Mirus film printer started yielding dividends very soon. Expenses were low and on retrospection one feels the income was very comfortable. We also tried our hand at printing activities. This proved to be a major debacle as we lost a lot of money in the failed offset venture and later in the Canon digital printer. Both the plans were ill conceived hence a very high price had to be paid for this. This was about 15-16 years ago. I should have then sat down and charted our my strengths and weaknesses rather than blindly trusting my instincts. As a consequence of not tackling the issue in a positive way, I became very conservative to the point of being pessimistic about the future. Business was growing but at a very sluggish pace. During the past 15 years I really started saving. Earlier most of our earnings (comfortable yet meagre as they were), were ploughed back in the business). I had started my PPF account about 25 years ago but never really contributed any substantial sums to it. I was risk averse so mutual funds and equity were never thought of initially. The usual avenues of FDs, RDs, PPF and ludicrously LIC policies! About 16 years ago Mr. Katdare from our society sought an appointment with me and was able to convince me about mutual funds. I was intrigued and started investing in a cautious manner. Vidula too started investing. Later ICICIDirect happened and I started investing in direct equity on my own, occasionally consulting Suhas kaka. Several MFs were redeemed, new ones started. All this while my PPF continued to grow and LIC policy premiums were duly honoured. In 2018 after wading in the investment waters for about 15-16 years I decided to shift to a PMS. I now hope that this agency is able to deliver.
The important question
The most important question plaguing my mind is whether I have really understood "investing". All these years I have been looking out for options to maximise my "monetary gains". But what about my personal growth? What about my mind? What about acquiring a new skill? I have scored a zero on this account. I have still not really figured out my strengths and weaknesses. I will have to think hard about the immediate future as it looks very dim for now. We are charting unknown territory as our business has metamorphosed. The big question is do I really want to continue what I am doing? It is high time I got out of my comfort zone. The question of savings and money seems to have been sorted out, at least for now. I will have to think of some very low capital business idea and start working on it immediately.'
This is food for thought. This requires careful, planned, goal oriented action. That too quick.
The important lesson is one has to keep investing in oneself. Investment need not be just monetary. If you do not evolve with changing times, you will die soon. This is the most important lesson for me.
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