Investing, a long term strategy to grow your wealth

Idah Masekela is a 28 year-old mom, foodie and netball star who, almost a year ago, added ‘shareholder’ to her list of achievements.  At the time, Idah knew very little about the stock market but has since grown her wealth, knowledge and experience by following her gut, researching companies online and forming good financial habits. 

Since I have been exposed to the investment world, I have realized that I have to have a long-term point of view and that if I just keep at it and invest what I can when I can, it will pay off and afford me a decent retirement down the line. It’s about being patient and realizing that Rome wasn’t built in a day - meaning that when you start to invest you might not get any dividends or returns right away, but that you will eventually.

When people hear ‘investment’ they think they can only start if they have a big chunk of money or millions of Rands… But really, anyone anywhere can now put in the little that they have for themselves and their children, and become shareholders. I’m using the money I receive from any work incentivized bonuses to put towards my portfolio.

I think it’s important to allow yourself to take risks, but to also do your homework and research. There’s so much information available online - I love reading Mark Ingham’s notes but I also look out for tweets and other investor profile blogs on the EasyEquities Facebook and Twitter feed, it’s always interesting to see what other people in the community are investing in and why.