Firstly, let's talk about investing.
Why do I feel it's important for you to understand what investing actually means…
Why should you even invest in the first place?
And what is the purpose of investing?
Because often, people get excited about investing without truly understanding it.
Some are driven by the desire to make more money.
Some are driven by greed.
Some are simply following the crowd and participating in whatever trend is popular at the moment.
Others experience FOMO and invest because everyone around them seems to be doing it.
And sometimes, people are stuck in the mere illusion of investing. They buy products, open accounts, move money around, and call themselves investors, yet never achieve the purpose of investing itself.
Once you truly understand what investing is and why you're doing it, you will be able to recognise opportunities more clearly and make better decisions.
My Definition of Investing
In my definition, investing means acquiring or contributing to an ASSET today that has the potential to provide value and benefits in the future.
In simple terms:
You sacrifice something today.. usually time, money, energy, effort, or comfort in hopes of receiving something greater tomorrow.
That's investing.
What Is An Asset?
Many people immediately think of:
- Stocks
- Houses
- Businesses
- Gold
But an asset is much broader than that… An asset is anything that creates value for you.
Ideally, over time, that value finds its way back into your life through:
- Income
- Opportunities
- Growth
- Security
- Freedom
- Fulfilment
Some assets produce money directly. Others produce the knowledge, relationships, health, skills, or experiences that eventually lead to money.
The question is not whether something is an asset.
The question is: Does it create value?
And can that value compound over time?
Why Should We Invest?
Practically speaking, most of us earn money through a salary, business income, commissions, or professional services.
But why put that money away into the act of investing?
The first reason is simple.
You want to protect the value of your money from being eroded by inflation.
Money sitting idle slowly loses purchasing power over time.
To understand this more deeply, you need to understand how money works, how it is created, and how the economy functions. That's a discussion for another day.
The second reason is to grow and multiply your money.
Why?
Because it helps you achieve what you want in life easier and faster.
It allows you to reach financial goals with less time traded.
Imagine saving RM500 every month. After 20 years, you would accumulate RM120,000.
There's nothing wrong with that.
But investing gives your money the opportunity to grow alongside your efforts.
The idea is simple… Instead of spending your entire life working for money, you gradually build a situation where your money also works for you.
You trade less time working.
And gain more time living.
What Are We Really Seeking?
Because deep down, most people do not want to trade time for money forever.
Most people desire:
- More freedom
- More choices
- More flexibility
- More experiences
- More control over their lives
Investing is simply one of the tools that helps us move towards that reality.
Money itself is usually not the goal.
Freedom is…Time is…Peace of mind is.
The ability to live life on your own terms is.
Investing helps create that possibility.
The First Asset You Should Invest In
Before stocks, property, businesses, any investment platform..
Invest in yourself.
You are your first asset.
Every skill you learn, book you read, podcast you listen to, healthy habit you cultivate, meaningful relationship you build, lesson you gain through experience…
All of these increase your value.
Consider investing in:
- Knowledge
- Skills
- Communication
- Leadership
- Financial literacy
- Health and fitness
- Emotional intelligence
- Spiritual growth
- Networks and relationships
The greatest return on investment often comes from becoming a more capable version of yourself.
Your ability to earn money in the future is directly related to the value you can create and contribute to the world.
The better the asset — YOU — the greater your ability to generate opportunities.
Investing Is Not About Getting Rich Quickly
Many people approach investing with one question:
"How much can I make?"
True investing is not gambling.
It is not chasing trends.
It is not blindly following the crowd.
Investing is the deliberate process of building/acquiring assets that create value over time.
The keyword is: TIME
The Real Goal
The purpose of investing is not merely to accumulate money.
The purpose of investing is to create a life where your assets work alongside you, allowing you to spend more time doing what truly matters.
At the end of the day, investing is not really about money.
It is about freedom.
It is about choices.
It is about creating a future version of yourself that has more options than the version of yourself today.
And every investment decision begins with one simple question:
Am I building/acquiring an asset, or am I simply participating
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