AN INTRODUCTION

The scenario in India has changed a lot since the draconian days of license raj.Indian youth is more confident about himself and relinquishing multi dollar packages to stay back to witness the Indian growth story,India Inc has exorcised the ghost of licence raj and acquiring companies abroad , giving collosal companies like Pfizer ,GE a run for their money.India is developing at the rate of knots ,this quarter India grew by 9.3% beating even China.All of this has driven consumerism which is resulting in another kind of dichotomy in our society ,the haves and have nots.Pre LPG(liberalisation,privatisation and globalisation) reforms consumerism was conspicuous by its absence.Mr gupta earning Rs 25,000/month drove the same maruti 800 as Mr Joshi who earned Rs 12000/month.Post LPG the with the advent of globalisation the Indian Consumer is sozzling Martinis ,munching Mc Donalds burger,trotting malls, partying like a pristine global citizen. The world has really become flat, but the disparity between rich and poor is more palpable now.Development has its price too.
As world becomes a global village ,competition soars .The companies are utilising every possible conduit to lure consumers to buy produts.The Indian consumer is spoilt for choice.Despite so many products available at his disposable he feels empty , his needs seem to be endless and his wants insatiable.THE MORE HE EARNS POORER HE FEELS.Mahatma Gandhi rightly said their is enough on this earth for man's need but not for man's greed.There is a popular adage that money cant buy happiness but I beg to differ on this .I feel that if money is spent wisely ,saved regularly and invested smartly money can buy happiness.It is important to get your priorties right and make discerning investments.The decisions that you take today will detrmine the address of your dream home,the car you would drive,the school your kids would go to .The ignorance of people towards investing is inspiring me to blog this article.I will try to demystify various investment instruments that a person could use to meet his financial goals depending upon his risk appetite ,needs and age.

PENNY WISE AND POUND FOOLISH

It is one of ironies of human nature.......on one hand we haggle over prices with sabjiwallahs,dont mind giving auto wallah and rickshawpullers a piece of our mind and lecturing them how exorbitant their charges are and on other hand how smugly we boast of the Rs 1000 Provogue shirt ,the latest mobile,the seven course meal at 5 star for which we paid for just to let our friends believe that everything is hunkydory at our end.Do not buy things just because one can afford them,always remember Price is what you pay and Value is what you get. Dont let Amitabh Bachchans and Sachin Tendulkars to decide what is good or bad for you .

WHAT IS AN INVESTMENT

Investment means transfer of resources from someone who doesnt need them for the time being to someone who needs them to make a new venture.The person who lends his money gets compensated in the form of interest ,dividend or appreciation in the value of his investment.Investing has two rules

Rule 1.Do Not loose money.

Rule 2.Never forget rule 1

There are umpteen number of investment options that a person can choose from. Following are some of them

1. Stock markets(Shares,stocks,equity)
2. Futures and Options
3. Mutual Funds
4. Commodities (Gold,Silver,Agro products)
5. Debt Instruments
6. Life Insurance
7. Real Estate and Property
8. Philately and Numesmatics

For a small investor,the drastic changes in the past years has left him bewildered.The declining interest rates have helped many to buy their dream homes and big ticket items but on the flipside it has punctured interest income of the retired and risk averse.He is now indundated with mutual fund schemes,loans,insurance plans which has left him more perplexed.

Creating wealth does not requires invitation nor it is for high heeled.Anyone with dreams and aspirations should do it,and we all have such desires throughout our lives ,thus wealth creation is a lifelong process .