Financial Literacy to become rich

Hello friends, I am Laxman Sonale, In today’s article we see the financial literacy to become rich from chapter 11:- ‘why must one invest’ from the book ” Stock To riches ” by Parag Parikh. In this chapter, you know the difference between rich people and poor and middle-class people’s income, their expenses. The most important how we become rich.

so let’s start

Previous Chapter 10

Chapter 11:- Why must one Invest:-Financial Literacy

Financial Literacy

In the starting, the author gives a quote on today’s situation.

“Modern man drives a mortgaged car over a bond financial highway on credit card gas.”

– Early Willson

In this chapter, the author talks about the basics of financial literacy. let’s see what he say

the author says, ” I would like to end the book with some thoughts on the paradigm of money and the basic of financial literacy. these concepts are very well explained in the Rich dad, poor dad series authored by Robert T. Kiyosaki with Sharon L. Lechter.

We are afraid of losing money, of not having enough to make. if you have a passion for anything you will accept by passion helps you to think positively. But when you do that you will never have enough money to fulfill your desires.

People believe that money can solve all their problems, but that idea is an illusion.

Remember when you were just out of college. you had certain desires to be fulfilled and certain bills to be paid. so you were thrilled when you got a job. (Financial Literacy)

you believed that the paycheque at the end of the month would solve all your problems when the paycheque arrived you paid the bills for your desires. you were happy about it, but this happiness was short-lived.

As soon as you fulfilled your desires, they increased and you required more money to fulfill your desires. they increased and you required more money to fulfill those new desires.

When you got a hike in your salary the pleasure was again short-lived for your desires increased in proportion to your income.

It’s a never-ending story and you are always afraid that you will never have enough. so every time you think of money fears grips you and you make decisions not with your mind but with your heart.

What you need to do is to change your paradigm. passion should drive you not to fear, think of what you can do with money and what you should do to make it.

money is an idea. you see it more clearly with your mind than your eyes. learning to play the game of money is an important step on your journey to financial freedom.”

after this explanation, then the author talks about learning the money game.

Learning the Money Game:- Financial Literacy

in this point, the author shows how money works for rich people, middle-class people, and poor people.

the author says, ‘ To be a successful investor you must know how money works, there are some elementary facts about finance that unfortunately are not taught in schools and colleges. (Financial Literacy)

so let’s begin, learning now

The question you should ask Yourself: What is an Asset?

Answer:- An asset is that which creates an income for the owner.

see the following image to understand better.

Financial Literacy

Question: What is Liability?

Answer:- A liability is that which creates an expense for the owner.

see the following image to understand better.

Financial Literacy

then the author gives the difference between asset and liability with bank examples

author says,” have you been approached by banks willing to lend you money to buy a house? Does your banker say he will help you buy an asset?

Attractive deals in the form of low-interest rates and long-term mortgage payments are offered. so you go ahead and buy your dream house thinking you are buying an asset.

By the definition of an asset, it should create an income for you. however, here it is creating on expense in the form of mortgages, taxes, interest, etc.

so common sense demands that you treat it as a liability rather than an asset.”

then, the author explains, why a banker tells you, a house is an asset.

the author says, ” Yes, the banker did tell you that you are buying an asset. what he did not tell you was that he was buying the asset for the bank and a liability for you.

There is nothing wrong in buying a house and mortgage, but understand that you are thereby creating a liability for yourself that will entail further expenses. even if you buy a house with your own money and kept it locked you should treat os as a liability as you are incurring expenses for its upkeep in the form of maintenance charges, property tax, society charges. etc. (Financial Literacy)

However, if you buy a house on mortgage and rent it, and your rental income is higher than the mortgage, then you have a positive cash flow.

House becomes an asset as it generates an income. Understanding how assets and liabilities work is basic to Financial Literacy.

Your cash flow is an indication of whether you are building assets or taking liabilities. if income is coming in your pocket, you have an asset, if income is going out of pocket, it is a liability.

Once you understand this you can work out your own financial future.”

then the author explains the Cash Flow of middle-class

Cash flow of the Middle-Class People:

In this, the author says, ” A majority of the customers of bank and consumer goods companies come from the middle-class. it is not because of their inherent purchasing power but because they happen to be attractive borrowers.

They are cautious about money yet, as they strive to improve their standard of living they get increasingly into debt. all their lives they work to pay off their mortgages, credit cards bills, car longs, etc.

they start small, like taking a loan to buy a two-wheeler, but soon their desires increase and they want to buy a car. so they go to the bank and take a car loan to fulfill their desire. with a bigger loan, the outgoings increase and they desperately look for a hike in their salary.

the hike comes and with it the desire to buy a bigger car. so the bank offers them a bigger loan. and this goes on and on. expense move and an increase in salary are soon nullified.

Only the liability increase; no-effect is a mode to increase the asset. they don’t realize that they have started working for the bank also ( by taking up liabilities.)

Now they work for two bosses. One who provides the job, and the bank to whom they give the interest, mortgage, etc?

this is the cash flow of the middle-class, which you will understand better from the following image.

Financial Literacy

As the income of the middle-class increase so does their liabilities.

they make little effects to create assets Instant gratification and financial illiteracy dominate their decision-making. they believe, they are creating assets in the form of houses, cars,s, etc. whereas they are only creating liabilities and increasing their expense. (Financial Literacy)

see the following image to understand middle-class people status quo

Middle Class Status quo

What differentiates the middle class from the rich is their lack of financial literacy.

it is the cash flow that makes all the difference the rich understand the power of money and they make it work for them. they always have a positive cash flow.”

then the author talks about the cash flow of the rich.

Cash flow of rich people:-

in this the author says, ” the rich create assets, the assets create income, from they create more assets. even if they buy a house on mortgage, they rent it and the rentals are higher than the mortgage and other charges they pay.

so the house is an asset for them even if they take a bank loan to acquire it. see the following image to understand better way.

cash flow pattern of rich people

the balance sheet of the rich consists of assets like stocks, bonds, real estate, etc.

their income derives mainly from dividends, interest, rental, etc. they make their money work for them and they do not create liabilities.

thus their expenses are under control. anyone can do what the rich do.

Firstly it requires discipline to stay the course and avoid instant gratification of desires.

Secondly, it requires an understanding of the basic principles of assets and liabilities. it’s easy to become financially literate if you have the patience.

some say that money begets money these people should have stayed rich, they lost only because they were not financially literate.

they did not know, how to harness the power of money. To become rich you must have a passion for money. Making money is a game and you must enjoy playing it. It is tough but worth the trouble.”

the Roads to Riches

then the author gives fours ways of making money.

the author says, ” there are four ways by which people make money ad each method forms one quadrant of the income generation circle. (Financial Literacy)

different people fall into different cash quadrants depending upon the source of their cash flow.

  1. Employee cash flow quadrant:- they work for somebody and earn a salary as employees.
  2. Self-employed cash flow quadrant:- they are the professionals like, doctors, lawyers, architects who are self-employed.
  3. Businessman cash flow quadrant:- they are the ones who own a business.
  4. Investor cash flow quadrant:- they are investors whose income comes from investments.

to which quadrants do you belong.

Modes of Income Generation

whichever quadrant you may be, if you want to make your money work for you need to make every effort to get into the investor quadrant.

Only then will you be able to achieve financial freedom.

A lot of us would love to be in the business quadrant, but few of us are not blessed with the skills or the abilities, or the resources to run a business.

so the best alternative would be to take a share of the profits of the company by way of dividends and capital appreciation. to gain a detailed perspective on the above concepts I would strongly recommend to the read the rich had, poor dad, cash flow quadrant by Robert T. Kiyosaki with Sharon L. Lechter ( C.P.A.)”

then the author talks about the best form of investment,

for that, you can read this in the book,

buy the book from the following image link

So this is all about the chapter 11 summary of the book ” stocks to riches ” by Parag Parikh on Financial literacy.

Mutual Funds:- Honest Review

Hello friend, I am Laxman Sonale, In this article, we see Mutual Funds: an idea of when time has gone from chapter 9 of the book Stock to riches. In this Parag Parikh Explain the mutual fund industry and also the fund manager problem, as well as the destroyer environments. So let’s understand the most famous industry in finance.

Previous Chapter 8

Chapter 9: Mutual Funds: an Idea where time has Gone

Mutual Funds:- Honest Review

In this starting author explain the real meaning of Investing, If you think investing or stock market is some magical place and those take the risk on that they win and become very rich in overnight. then you can ignore this article right now.

But if you invest in mutual funds without knowing about them, and their behavior/psychology, then this article helps you most to understand this industry.

you want to learn about investing and avoid the big mistakes of financial life/in mutual funds then you must read with understanding.

so hope you get the notification. so let’s start this chapter 9

At the start, the author says, ” Investing is a game of patience, and investors get rewarded if they invest for the long term. the longer one stays invested the greater are the rewards. Buy a value, sit on it, and left time to do the rest.

In today’s changing time’s investors shun the age-old wisdom of Long term investing and chase the illusion of short-term quick profits. Keynes is often quoted – ” In the long run we are all dead” – to justify the speculative urge of Short-term quick profit.

the strategy of short-term is to time the market rather than invest in good sustainable business. sometimes you go night and make a quick buck. (Mutual Funds:- Honest Review)

But the game of Timing can be very difficult and it is hardly advisable when it concerns one’s hard-earned money. Everything changes but there are certain principles that do not change. the power of principles is that they are universal timeless truths. if we live our life based on these we can quickly adapt and apply them anywhere world, we cling to practices, structures, and systems for some sense of predictability in our lives. we forgot the principles and we are headed for trouble.

Investment management is a profession but it is being run like a business. So the rules of sound investment take a back seat and the rules of business dominate.”

then the author explains the beginning of the Mutual funds

The Beginnings of Mutual funds:-

In this point, the author explains the history of mutual funds, and how this industry is born.

the author says, ” This industry was created to channel the savings of a vast number of small investors into the capital markets. it Is a vehicle to safeguard the interests of the small investors who are assumed to be incapable of taking investment decisions on their own.

The Mutual fund industry provides the basic infrastructure for professional investors, in the form of professional fund managers investment research, business analysts, stock market analysis, and system to cater to the huge pool of investors. the aim is to fulfill the long-term investment needs of retail investors.”

the rule of the Game of mutual funds

  1. Long term Investment Strategy
  2. Investor friendly: Exit Within 24 hours
  3. Professional fund managers with strong market expertise.
  4. Backed by strong Research Analyst.

You also know about these rules, when you start investing in mutual funds, in the form of SIP. so this is the main rule, let’s see the deep game, from the fund manager side, to understand this, the author explains The Paradox concept

The Paradox:-

the author says, ” Most mutual funds talk about long-term investment strategy. however, they are open-ended and the investor can exit whenever he wants.

The paradox is that on the one hand it talks about a long-term investment philosophy but on the other, it does not encourage the investor to be a long-term player. (Mutual Funds:- Honest Review)

this is because the normal practice in the mutual fund industry is to have open-ended funds and the principle of long-term investment takes a back seat, the game is that of timing the market and looking for short-term gains.

In Fact, it would be wrong to assume that investors do not want their money looked in for long periods. If that were true then people would not invest in RBI bonds, or past savings schemes for five to seven years, or in the public provident fund, for 15 years.”

then author blames this industry, for many reasons, let’s see one by one reason

the author says, ” The industry itself needs to be blamed for nurturing and nursing the culture of open-ended schemes. As the industry grew so did the competition leading to high marketing costs.

Money comes when the markets climb as the net asset values start going up. there is a scramble to get in and fund managers are pressured to invest in a rising market at inflated asset prices.

However, pull-out(taking out money from mutual funds) forces fund managers to sell the portfolio at depressed prices to meet the redemptions.

the basic principle of buying when prices are depressed and others are selling, and selling when prices are high and others are buying is not workable. fund managers are forced to act in a way that does not conform with the basic investment principle.

fund manager’s decisions are being controlled by the environment.”

then author talk about the Fund managers Behaviour, if you invest in a mutual fund, then you should this following paragraph carefully to understand fund manager behavior

Fund Manager’s Behaviour:-

the author says, ” Because of the pressure to perform in the short run, fund managers chase each other’s net asset values rather than follow sound investment strategies.

When the information, communication, and entertainment (ICE sector) moved up in 1999, fund managers chased those stocks, and prices rose steeply. (Mutual Funds:- Honest Review)

Most of them had the same ICE stocks among their Top holdings. at the time of the rise of the public sector understanding in the oil sector, most of them had ONGC, BPCL, and HPCL as their top holdings.

then when the fed passed, they competed to sell and depressed the prices. it is obvious that the herd mentality is what drives them to make decisions.

newspaper and financial journals report quarterly performance of funds. Influenced by this news, investors enter and exit funds forcing fund managers to change strategies midway. they are thus forced to keep up with market trends and this affects their performance.

Also, the practice of offering bonuses and rewards for turning in short-term profits rather than for following a sound investment strategy forces them to adopt short-term strategies. as a result, it is the investors who lose.

For if making short-term money was so simple in the market he would not be a fund manager. he would be busy making money for himself playing the market.

This is not to say that all fund managers are mediocre. the Indian capital market does have some very good talent and we need to create the right environment for such talent to flourish and at the same time reap benefits for the mutual fund holders.”

after this, the author explains the destructive environment for mutual funds.

Destructive Environment:-

In this point, the author talks about the mutual fund environment.

the author says, ” the mutual fund manager manages the money of investors whom he has not even seen. it is the sales team and third-party distributors who bring in the investors. In a situation where fiduciary responsibility is very important, not knowing the investor whose money he is managing can call his commitment into question.

Mutual fund managers have a file of cash to be invested in the stock markets. naturally, broker company managements and other operators chase them with quick money ideas. with so much attention being showered on them,

there is a danger that they could overestimate their abilities and performance. Sometimes the rewards for performance could also make them overconfident. (Mutual Funds:- Honest Review)

It is true that we can not blame the fund manager but the point is when there are so many good professionals in the field, they should not be forced to operate in less than conducive environments.

The business of a broker depends upon the number of resources he is able to mobilize for the fund. hence brokers may try to sell a fund to investors not because it is a good investment but in order to generate business from the purchase and sale of stocks.

The fund manager and the broker please each other for their own benefit and in the process, it is the investor who suffers.

the development of the mutual fund’s concept was perfect for its time. the idea was to pool together the resources of investors and invest them in the stock markets.

Professional fund managers backed by strong research would handle the investments. thus the investor was assured of the services of professionals. but times have changed.

The level of education has improved. information flow has increased. The Internet enables the exchange of information in real-time. Online trading enables real-time execution.

Chat sites ( like our blog) help investors discuss their views and seek opinions. the power of knowledge has shifted from the hands of a few to those of the masses.

We now have a web of smart professionals with new ideas knowledge and operations as compared to a handful who are working for the mutual fund industry.

in fact, the concept of mutual funds has become outdated. mutual funds are competing with millions of traders. and with so much volatility and pressure on performance, they have also become weekly traders, if not day traders.

our belief that mutual funds are good is getting another example of a mental heuristic.

then the author talks about mutual funds as a profession or business.

Mutual funds: A profession or A Business

in this point author puts both scenarios of the profession and the business

author says, ” Money management is a profession. the professionals who make it are validated by their performance. unfortunately, the advent of mutual funds has turned it into a business where the goal is to increase the assets under management.

today, funds compete for the size of assets, chasing a benchmark of relative returns. the aim is to beat the top-performing fund. Even a poor two percent becomes a benchmark.

On the other hand, a professional like a portfolio manager will benchmark against absolute returns because in most cases has fees are linked to his performance.”

then lastly the author gives the solution of mutual funds.

Mutual funds solution:-

in this author explain the different types of mutual funds, and which one is best, let’s see

the author says, ‘ Open-ended mutual funds are the main cause of the volatility in the markets today. I believe that close-ended mutual funds(is a type of mutual fund that issues a fixed number of shares of their own fund) are the best vehicles for a long-term investor.

it allows the fund manager to be disciples, which in turn reaps substantial rewards for investors. no doubt the choice of such funds is limited. (Mutual Funds:- Honest Review)

In this case, the price of the fund could fluctuate according to the net asset value, but when the units change hands they go from one investor to another and there is no redemption on the fund.

the fund manager, therefore, is free to make long-term decisions because the environment does not control him. for the healthy growth of the mutual fund industry, more such close-ended funds need to be floated.

however, the irony is that close-ended mutual funds quote at a premium prior to listing and at a discount to the net asset value after listing. This discount may be viewed as an expensive monument erected to the inertia and short-sightedness of the shareholders.

The price movements of close-ended funds display the fickle behavior of investors as investor sentiment varies over time.

When noise traders are optimistic, the price of the net asset value narrows. when noise traders are pessimistic, the price of close-ended funds declines, and the discount to the net asset value widens.

Investors in close-ended mutual funds are subject to two types of risk: firstly, the fundamental risk of the net asset value going down, and secondly, the noise trader risk of widening the discount due to pessimism. The opportunity arises in the second scenario.

However, the investor would need the patience to benefit from such an opportunity. But isn’t investing a game of patience after all!

then the author talks about the future of open-ended mutual funds,

you can read this in the book, by ordering on the following image link.