The best time to plant a tree was 20 years ago. The second best time is now. Chinese Proverb

We officially live in a world where COVID-19 is a milestone in human history. Perhaps we shouldn’t call it a milestone but a waypoint?

Regardless, few people alive today, and in generations to come, will know a history that doesn’t include the impact that this virus has had around the world. It’s important for us to acknowledge this and not simply move forward without taking pause at this waypoint.

Many people are thinking ‘if only I’d prepared for this sooner.’ Now is not the time for us to be hard on ourselves if we didn’t have emergency funding or income protection in place. That’s not helpful; what’s done is done.

However, we can certainly make the decision, at this junction in history, to do things better going forward. If you didn’t start investing 20 years ago, the next best time to start is today. With the global crisis, we are forced to rethink what we previously thought to be valuable and re-align our values. It’s an amazing opportunity to centre ourselves and move forward in a more meaningful way.

But it’s not just about investing for the sake of investing, we need to be wise and invest better.

The first step is to assess your plan. For your investments to be both manageable and sustainable, they need to form part of your overall financial plan. This helps bring clarity to how we can narrow your investment opportunities to those that are best suited to your income, your current needs and your future needs.

The second step is to keep your vision clear. In bull markets, it’s easier to try and be picky about where you invest as you are not surrounded by cheap stock options – however, in a bear market – everything can look so cheap and appealing that it’s tempting to scoop up stock all over the show and feel like you’re diversifying wisely.

Don’t be distracted by lower entry points into the markets, due-diligence is more important than ever in a bear market.

Freedom to invest doesn’t mean we should just jump in and swim around in the markets. Don’t panic and sell; but also – don’t panic and just buy everything you can.

Our goal is to help you achieve your freedom to invest better. We advise; you thrive.