What can start as harmless spending on the things you love can turn into a dangerous habit of overspending. Without thinking, you can spend your day’s income on some expensive café’ coffee, the trendiest clothing, or the latest gadgets. Only to realise that there’s good coffee at home, your clothes are overflowing, and that your smartphone is already functional.
 

That is the thing with making impulsive purchases. They might seem necessary in the present, but on reflecting, you realise you never needed it in the first place. Even if you aren’t overspending and putting your money aside for better use in the future, your funds will lose value over time due to inflation.
 

What then can you do with your money to get the most out of it later on? You can start saving and exploring the various investment options in India! Read on to know more.  
 

Why Should You Save and Invest Your Money?
 

In your youth, the responsibilities on your shoulder might not be a lot unless you are the sole income earner in your family. Well before your 30s, your contribution at home, your responsibilities of starting a family and funding your children’s expenses, and taking care of your parents might be minimal, leaving ample of your earned income to yourself. This is the ideal time to take advantage of saving and investing because those who start early have various investment options in India available at affordable prices.
 

Starting in your youth also leaves enough space for your money to grow and multiply. So, even if you save and invest a small sum now, a 30+-year-old who saves or invests more amount but later than you will earn lesser than you. Due to the power of compounding, an investment made early grows to its maximum potential the longer the time it gets.
 

Also, as mentioned above, inflation eats away at the value of the rupee over time. As the price of goods and services increases, so should the value of your money. You might also have some future goals in mind for yourself. Most goals need sufficient funds to make them come true. Like these, there are plenty of other reasons why you should save and invest your money instead of spending it aimlessly.
 

What are Some of the Basic Saving and Investment Tips?
  

 

Saving and investing is a long-term and continuous process, which means you have to start somewhere modest. Before you get started here are some basic saving and investment tips:
 

• Track your spending:
  
  The first step towards creating successful savings and investments is to become aware of where your money is going. Go conventional and use a note pad or stay modern and use your phone pad, but start noting down your expenditure. Better yet, make a budget and try not to exceed it. That way, you can cut down unnecessary expenditure with ease.
   

• Assess your goals.
  
  While it is good to go with the flow and enjoy life, it is also vital to have some purpose in life. Otherwise, you might end up with a life you didn’t choose. Having some aims that need financial backing is a great way to take charge of yourself. Think about where you would like to see yourself a few years down the line. Your goals could include anything – from pursuing that higher degree to travelling the world.
   

• Open a separate savings account:
  
  In your 20s, you will, of course, have a base bank or savings account for your time-to-time expenditure. But consider opening a separate savings account or recurring deposit where you can set aside some money for investing and the bigger things in life like emergency expenses or paying off a pending debt.

 

What Effective Strategies Should You Use to Invest Your Money?
 

To get to investing, you must have a dedicated amount set aside for the purpose. Once you do, you can adopt any of these strategies to embark on your wealth-creating journey.

 

• Save in a guaranteed¹ savings plan
  
  A guaranteed¹ savings plan or assured income insurance plan is of the saving avenues for less risk- investments for assured returns. Such a saving plan gives you the dual benefits of life insurance protection and goal-oriented savings.
  
  Life insurance in a savings policy takes care of your loved ones in your absence due to death or unforeseen eventuality. The savings aspect takes the income you invest and multiplies it at a predetermined rate so you can receive assured periodic payments.
  
  For instance, with the Tata AIA life insurance savings plan, you receive guaranteed¹ income for up to 45 years. This assured and regular income can become an additional source of income that can help you tick off your goals from time to time.
  
  
• Get life insurance and insurance for critical illness.
  
  Apart from a guaranteed¹ saving plan, getting life insurance is an essential method if you want to provide financial support to your loved ones in your absence. It covers your family by providing an assured monetary sum on your demise, demise due to an accident, permanent physical injury due to an accident and other such eventualities.
  
  Even critical and terminal illnesses threaten to burden you and take away your family’s peace, so it is crucial to get insurance for critical illness to get that added layer of protection. Insurance has helped many unfortunate families to tackle the loss of their core earning member. Starting young will make the insurance premiums you need to pay very affordable and earn you a better coverage as well.  
   

To sum it up:
 

Apart from a guaranteed¹ income plan and insurance for critical illness or any other eventuality, there are plenty of other investment avenues you can explore. These include term insurance, mutual funds, debt funds, stocks, and others that can help you grow your money in different ways and amounts. The bottom line is to start early and choose wisely.
 

L&C/Advt/2022/Sep/2338