Don’t look at me that way – I know what you’re thinking:
“Investing tips? From Percy Jackson? Isn’t that a kiddie movie? What’s the relationship?”
It turns out that there are 5 connections between investing and between being in the Percy Jackson world. Don’t believe me? Here they are:
Investing Tip #1: You will often make mistakes – just stand up again and keep moving.
Percy Jackson wasn’t prepared when he found out that he was the son of Poseidon. Oh no, suddenly everything changed for him. He was supposed to go on quests, fight monsters and rescue prisoners – even though he wasn’t an expert fighter yet. As a result, he made mistakes but he still stood up and kept moving.
Spoiler alert: In the end, he succeeds!
In investing, because you’re taught to invest even before you feel ready, you will undoubtedly make mistakes, too. You will dabble in certain investment vehicles, you will fight naysayers and protect your investment portfolio. At the start, you’ll mess up. But as time goes by and you gain wisdom, things will get better (and you will succeed!)
Investing Tip #2: Experience is a good teacher. But, if you want to learn without sacrificing too much, a mentor would be helpful.
Percy has Chiron, a centaur, as his mentor. Since Percy is not that skilled and knowledgeable yet, he turns to Chiron to guidance.
Sure, your mentor or financial advisor may not be a centaur, but when you’re still starting, it’s nice to have one to help yoy. You have to do your own homework, too, though – a mentor is there to guide you, not to dictate your decisions.
In the end, you decide.
Investing Tip #3: Long-term investing is not sexy, thrilling or intense. That’s okay.
Admirers of Percy think that the quests he goes on to are thrilling and exciting but Percy personally believes they’re not. Just like in investing, people who haven’t invested yet believe that investing is intense and dangerous. But, you’ll get used to it, especially if you’re in it for the long run.
Investing Tip #4: Invest with a goal in mind.
Percy and his friends go on quests to retrieve something, find something, save something or fight something. Whatever the case is, they go because they have a purpose to do so. You don’t just see them randomly go on quests because they feel like it!
A valuable investing tip is to consistently remember your investing goal. Why are you investing in a particular investing vehicle – for capital preservation or capital appreciation?
Investing Tip #5: Start early to take advantage of compound interest.
Percy started fighting when he was 12. When he was 16, he defeated the King of the Titans. Not bad, right?
As for investing, let’s compare two scenarios that differ in starting age, okay?
a. Started at age 25
Age started investing: 25 years old
Amount invested yearly: P 18,000 (P1,500 every month)
Annual interest rate: 10%
Age stopped investing: 40 years old
Total amount invested: P 270,000 + initial amount of P1,500
Total investment amount at 40: P 633,567.28
Total investment amount at 65: P 6,864,515.17
b. Started at age 27
Age started investing: 27 years old
Amount invested yearly: P 18,000 (P1,500 every month)
Annual interest rate: 10%
Age stopped investing: 42 years old
Total amount invested: P 270,000 + initial amount of P1,500
Total investment amount at 42: P 633,567.28
Total investment amount at 65: P 5,673,153.04
Basically, A and B invested the same annual amount of P 18,000 for the same number of years (15 years).
The difference is A started at 25 years old and stopped at 40 years old. B started at 27 years old and stopped at 42 years old. Meaning, after 15 years of investing, they both stopped.
But, they both retired at the same age – 65 years old.
A ends up with P 6,864,515.17 while B ends up with P 5,673,153.04.
Think about it: A only started 2 years earlier but there is already a difference of P 1,191,362.13.
Nice, right? Thank you, compound interest!
See? The early bird doesn’t only get the worm – he gets the higher investment fund, too.
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