How the Everyday Millennial Got Over Investing Paralysis to Build Wealth – Business Insider
- It can be difficult to start investing due to “analysis paralysis.”
- Investment vehicles can be complex, and many people find learning about investing intimidating.
- Chris Chung got over his paralysis by getting help, doing research, and learning the rules.
Chris Chung knows what it feels like to have “analysis paralysis” around investing.
“When you work hard for your money and you put it in your savings account, you know what a savings account is like and you know what’s happening,” said Chung. “So it feels safe.”
Chung, a personal finance influencer on track to retire by age 45, told Insider that the first investment vehicle he ever tried out was a Roth IRA, and that he initially put off creating one for quite some time.
“I think I got the paralysis because I knew for a while that I should open a Roth IRA, but when it comes to money and investing, the last thing you want to do is do something stupid and have the IRS is come at you because you did it wrong,” he said.
Despite his reservations, he took three steps to get started:
1. Get help from someone who’s done it
Chung said that while money can be a taboo topic for a lot of people that might not come up in conversation, knowing that his sister-in-law she was planning to open a Roth IRA made a big difference.
Even though Chung did not have any investments at the time and felt “super intimidated” thinking about how to start, he said that after his sister-in-law — and her sister, as well — opened a Roth IRA, he felt comfortable asking her if she could help him.
“If they’re going to do it, then I’ll just join along,” said Chung, who told Insider that he opened his Roth IRA the very next day.
2. Do some research
After opening the account, the next issue that Chung ran into was that he didn’t know what funds to buy. His sister-in-law suggested that he do some research.
He started on Reddit. “I looked up the personal finance subreddit and looked through their frequently asked questions,” said Chung, who added that the subreddit — a user-moderated group focused exclusively on personal finance topics — helped him decide on what funds to buy.
Personal finance is a popular topic on Reddit. In addition to r/PersonalFinance, there are other popular investing-related subreddits including r/Bogleheads, r/financialindependence, and r/FinancialPlanning.
3. Learn the rules
The next question Chung had: “Now that I bought these funds, …….
Source: https://www.businessinsider.com/investing-paralysis-nerves-building-wealth-2022-4