There is something about simplicity and greatness. The two often go together. Some of the greatest ideas and advice are also the simplest. There also is something about financial success and investment tips. The two seldom go together. Some of the financially most successful people across different walks of life have achieved what they have by following simple rules of financial conduct — and not by chasing hot investment tips.
This was a pleasant and profound discovery we made over the past few weeks when we reached out to 30-odd achievers in different occupations to ask what was the best financial advice they ever got. The word financial was defined as any advice that had had a profound and lasting impact on their financial life. I confess that a majority of responses we received were more valuable than some of the best investment schemes or stocks we have ever recommended in the magazine.
That's why we decided to bring together these pearls of wisdom in our cover story for the first issue to hit the news-stand this year. We hope you will find them instructive and engaging. This story would not have been possible without generous help from our colleagues in INDIA TODAY, who spoke to many of the high and the mighty on our behalf.
Quite coincidentally, we also found in this issue a reason to question what we at MONEY TODAY and most financial planners have come to think of as one of the thumb rules of intelligent investing — that your financial investments should become less risky as you age. The 2001 Noble laureate Joseph Stiglitz recently challenged this hypothesis, arguing that there could be cases when you could actually reverse the risk-age correlation. That is, you could increase your investments in riskier financial instruments (such as stocks) as you age. Stiglitz’s rather contrarian view is based on his somewhat new and distinct treatment of human capital. For us, it was a pleasant revalidation of our 4 October 2007 cover story “Career as the Biggest Asset”.
Also, there are surprises in store for you in both the content and the format of this feature. Finally, a word on the promise we made in the last issue: of reintroducing our series on financial freedom fighters in an expanded and improved form. It has been included in this issue. The spirit and determination of 75-year-old BL Sood, our financial freedom fighter for this issue, is a role model for all consumers.
