You put in so much effort to earn money – isn’t it time you had it work hard for you, too? You may feel like you’re just beginning your investment journey – but you may already be investing, whether in KiwiSaver or a savings account earning interest.
Investing is a long-term game (it’s not for getting rich quickly) so it’s a good idea to get strategic before you commit your cash. You’ll want to invest wisely and stick with your plan.
The difference between saving and investing
Let’s get back to the essentials for a moment: saving is setting aside money now for your future. But if you simply stash it under a mattress, it tends to lose its value because of inflation.
If saving is setting aside money, think of investing as taking your savings and going shopping. In this case, you’re shopping for assets (kinds of investments) which put money back into your pocket. While most everyday things we buy simply drain our bank account, buying assets can ‘return’ money to us, by either growing in value or producing a regular stream of income.
And if the returns are good enough, we can outpace inflation, as well as earn more than any fees and taxes along the way. We can grow our money to reach our goals in life. More on that below.