This article is more likely not a guide to action, but a kind of road map. You will learn why the skill of investing is so important in the modern world, where to start, what are the important principles and rules. We will also analyze in which assets to invest money for novice investors in order to get a decent income and minimal risks. Investing is not an easy and partly dangerous activity, but we will try to make it easier.

Inflation, global economic crises, defaults and so on are raging around. The financial world is too unreliable to rely only on its cheaper savings, on the work that robots will do tomorrow, and neural networks and the state, which may plunge into the abyss of another crisis. Investing (despite all its riskiness) is not only a way to secure your money, but also a path to financial freedom and passive income.

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In addition to the fact that investing can generate income, it is also a skill that teaches you to analyze any situation very carefully, make a responsible choice, think over all moves in advance and minimize risks.

Even if you start with just a thousand rubles, this investment will pay off. If not money, then experience and knowledge. It doesn't matter how much you start with. Investing is a skill. And the sooner you start, the faster you will learn. Well, small amounts are only a plus - there is less risk of burnout due to inexperience.

Besides, everything is not as complicated as it seems. In the West, the principle of Asset allocation is popular, which implies that a non-professional investor pays minimum attention to a highly diversified portfolio. In total, you will need less than a day per year to manage your investments.

Basic investment rules

Before moving on to studying financial instruments, analyzing their risk, let's define investment axioms, failure to comply with which will definitely put you in front of bankruptcy. And the execution? - you ask. We do not promise, but it should help to make money.

Define your goals. What do you want from your investment activity? To protect against inflation or to ensure a comfortable old age? In the first case, it will be enough to open several deposits and a couple of hours a year to service them. In the second, you will need to create a serious portfolio with different sources of income and devote much more time to it. Having a goal is the first step in building an investment strategy.

Create and replenish investment capital. It's simple - save some of your income every month. Let's say it will be 10%. It can be more or less, the main thing is regularity. You can probably live off the remaining 90%, right?

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Be disciplined and don't panic. Google the dynamics of the gold price over the past 50 years - despite temporary ups and downs, the general trend shows an increase. Many other established assets, even the notorious cryptocurrencies, have the same behavior. If you've made a 10-year plan, you shouldn't sell your portfolio after 2 years because the price of gold has suddenly dropped by 25%. It is quite possible that in another 2 years it will grow by 100%

Minimize your risks. Whatever it is, you can always burn out, but it is in your power to lose the minimum. The easiest way to do this is to diversify your investment portfolio. Fill it with heterogeneous assets (stocks, precious metals, deposits, etc.), with varying degrees of profitability and risk. Remember the 80/20 rule: 80% of the portfolio should be low-risk, but low-profit assets, 20% - high-risk and high-profit assets.

Create an airbag. Do not invest all your savings in your investment portfolio. Not all financial assets are highly liquid. And if something happens, you will not be able to quickly find money to eliminate force majeure. Create a contingency fund and keep it as available as possible.

Don't invest borrowed funds. You cannot be 100% sure of the return on your assets, even if you have inside information. Playing with credit money is too dangerous to be justified. Better to invest less, but your own.

Think Critically. Do not trust anyone and analyze the asset yourself before entrusting it with your hard-earned money. Everyone is wrong, and so are top financial analysts. Trust only your instinct.

Invest in what you know. This point follows from the previous one. If you want to invest in a ready-made business or start-up, choose one that is close to your competencies. Do not work with an IT company if you are a humanist to the core.

Ignore market dynamics. Nobody can predict the dynamics. No matter what financiers say about their fundamental analysis, black swans always happen : both positive and negative. Do not rush to sell or buy at every market turn. Stick to your original strategy.

What can you invest in

There are a lot of profitable assets now. We will not go too deep, but consider only the main ones. If you are interested in this topic, write in the comments, and we will certainly take into account your wishes.

Deposits. The most reliable option, but also the least profitable. Great for a start - you won't make a lot of income, but keep your money safe from inflation.

Precious metals. Despite temporary drops, this asset is reliable and shows good profitability. The average return on gold (adjusted for inflation) in the period from 2003 to 2013 was 7.66%, silver - 13.4%, platinum - 12.7%.

The property. It has a high yield (up to 65% in 3-5 years) and makes it possible to receive passive income. Among the shortcomings - a high entry threshold and yet greater illiquidity than those of the same precious metals. In addition, the price of real estate is highly dependent on the general economic situation in the country.

Investment funds . There are many types of these organizations, but their essence is the same - you give your money under the management of professional financiers, for which they charge a portion of the profits. If you invest in a reliable company, you can expect a 12-40% annual return with a comparable level of risk.

Business and startups. The younger the startup, the more profit you can get. If the young company does not burn out, which happens in 80% of cases. This is definitely not an option for a beginner. But on the other hand, the percentage of profit has no ceiling here.

Securities. This option is very similar to the previous one. The shares of some companies can rise by tens or hundreds of percent, but they can fall in the same way. However, you can use low-yield, but more reliable government bonds.

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Cryptocurrencies. This is a completely new financial instrument, and therefore very incomprehensible and unreliable, but still promising fantastic profits. In some cases, the price increase was more than 1000% per month (as happened with bitcoin in 2013). True, his fall was just as loud and fast.

Naturally, the above does not exhaust the knowledge that a novice investor needs to have. Therefore, it makes sense to deepen your knowledge with the help of specialized literature.

Investing is the only way to protect your money from depreciation, albeit a risky one. But investing should be your minimum plan, and your maximum plan - to get a source of passive income. If you do everything right and include critical thinking , then this is a completely achievable goal. Be careful and smart - and you don't have to think about retirement!

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