Eye on the prize

I invest in various places and quite often watch my investments. I suppose many do the same and certainly in a rocky market it can pay to do so. I have investments that don't fluctuate very much, long term ones like property, and others which can swing this way or that on a day to day basis; Crypto and metals for instance.

Recently the Australian stock market got slammed; It's taken me several days to pluck up the courage to take a look at my superannuation fund to see the damage incurred however I did so today and was...Well I guess dismayed is as good a word to use as any. It's lost me some money and I'm not pleased.

I wrote a post a short while ago about researching investments and the importance of research. In it I mentioned diversification, a word that was echoed in various ways in comments upon that post and in posts by other users like @organduo and @newageinv plus many others as well. Diversification helps to mitigate risk.

Here you can see the way my superannuation fund is diversified between cash, bonds, Australian and international equities, property, infrastructure, defensive alternatives and growth alternatives...Sounds legit right? I hope it is...Because I don't hold any sway over any of them. I put my money into the fund and trust that someone knows what they're doing and that it grows commensurate with my needs moving forward. Sure, I can select a risk-level but I don't really know where my money is and whilst much of it is growth-money, much of it is made up of my hard-earned cash which I've injected.

Eye on the prize
Not knowing where my money is, exactly where my money is, makes me feel nervous. However, as part of my strategy, I throw some of it to my super-fund and hope for the best.

In contrast, I know where my precious metals are - In the pirate treasure chest in the spot marked X, and I can go and look at it, and I do. It's comforting. I also know where my property investments are and can look at them too. Sort of the same with crypto really I suppose right? I can cash it all out - see it.

What I can't physically see is my end-goal. I mean, I'm not there yet and so it's obscured from my physical sight. My minds-eye sees it well-enough though. What does it look like?

Well, it looks like the ability not to have to work, the ability to engage more with my hobbies, to travel more, to share more time with my wife and family. It looks like days spent with books and coffee, learning new things and understanding the old (I love history). It looks like camping in the wilderness learning new skills, throwing time into handing down the skills I have to those who want to learn and develop. It means writing more, a project-write maybe, volunteering, giving back... That's what the end goal looks like and what I aim my investments at. In truth, it's not really an end-goal, it's pretty much just life with financial independence I suppose. I think the 'prize' is not so much the investment, but what the investment will do for a person. Don't get me wrong, I do all of those things above now, but in between the whole working for the man thing and not in the quantities I wish to. Investment in the past helps feed and fund my lifestyle now and will do so into the future.

So my investments are diversified. If one falls backward maybe another moves forward, if one takes a hit maybe another remains stable.

I totally endorse keeping an eye on ones' investments, totally! However I also believe one needs to keep an eye fixed on the WHY of it all. The ultimate goal of investing in the first place. We all do it for various reasons...Some to place themselves in a position to buy something: A house, business, vehicle, holiday...Other's to build a legacy or foundation for family, some for charity I suppose too. No matter the reason, keeping the eye on the prize, the reasons for taking the ownership and responsibility for investing in the first place, is just as critical as watching investments.

I'd be interested in hearing of other people's WHY's, the reasons for investment and if they are similar or different to my own. Feel free to share.

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Design and create your ideal life, don't live it by default
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