Investing is the means to reaching dreams—dreams people have at different stages of their lives. Younger people dream of lavish houses, luxury cars, elegant yachts, and traveling to exotic places. Older people dream of sending their children to top colleges, buying vacation homes, and a comfortable retirement.
Simply put, investing is about the “meaning of money,” as John Hagensen, the founder and managing director of Keystone Wealth Partners, puts it.
And that’s the # 1 investment tip, according to Hagensen. “My “Number 1 Tip for Building a Stronger Financial Future” is to: Identify Your Real Purpose For Money,” says Hagensen. “Nothing inspires financial progress more effectively than when we align our money and our mission. Money is simply a tool that we use to accomplish meaningful things in our lives. If we lack an understanding of why that tool matters, our account balances become empty and nothing more than an arbitrary number on a page.”
Five-Year Performance of Stocks, Bonds, Gold, and Real EstateKoyfin
Andrew McNair, the president of SWAN Capital, agrees.“Start with the end in mind. Many people have dreams of retirement yet haven’t sat down to put a price tag on their ideal retirement,” says McNair. “How much will the 2nd home on the beach or in the mountains cost? How much traveling do you really plan to do? Often times it takes far less than we once thought to have the dream retirement we wish.”
Starting with an “end in mind,” a financial dream in other words, requires careful planning, according to Zach Gray, an Investment Adviser Representative and partner at Wall Street Financial Group.
That’s his #1 tip for reaching the dream. “My biggest tip for building your financial future is to “start planning and the sooner, the better,” says Gray. “Several studies show that we spend nearly 10x more time planning vacations vs. planning our retirements during our working years. It’s never too early to begin the planning process and get the ball rolling.”
Nathan Lawson, Financial Advisor – The Affinity Group, tells investors to invest in stocks.“The easiest thing to do is invest in the stock market. You can create a money making machine that will work for you when you’re sleeping. The only way to get ahead is to invest for your future.”
Meanwhile, Ari Janmohamed, a registered Investment Advisor Representative in Sandy Utah, reminds investors something Warren Buffet said. ‘The #1 rule of investing is Never Lose Money.’ “You can’t build your financial future if you’re trying to make up for past losses,” he says. “ You will actually have more money with average returns and no losses than with huge returns and average losses.”
Simply put, don’t be greedy in investing in your life’s dreams.