Short statement written for Business Finance
My previous level of investing experience cannot be understated. A would-be academian and learner of dead languages, I deliberately and proudly stuck my head in the sand when it came to all matters financial, believing that investing was for materialistic dullards who couldn’t find any other, more engaging pursuit. It was a horribly snobbish and close-minded outlook (as though learning Old English was so much more pertinent today. Please), and it manifested in my personal finances. I hadn’t even balanced my checkbook for over a year, becoming more and more wary of doing so as my numbers drifted further and further from the bank’s, and my Quicken account would’ve made just about anyone cringe. I lived in fear each time I had to shop for groceries or get my car checked out, but oddly enough, still regularly purchased Starbucks drinks and thrift-store clothing I didn’t need. You can see how topsy-turvy my priorities were. All this began to turn around several months before I began this discussion board: in fact, several months before I took this class. I had always wanted to be taken seriously as a person and be a good influence on and a light to others, but had never really had my own life in order. I was also coming to the realization that to succeed in the big things, being diligent in the little things was key. I stopped speeding, deleted all my pirated music, mysteriously started making my bed every morning, and-wonder of wonders!-balanced my checkbook, drew up a budget, and actually stuck to it, even when it came down to the crucial decision of coffee vs. budget (you can imagine what a hard one that was to make!).
Those little changes were mainly painting the background for the real picture, however. My perspective on investing really began to change when, in the summer before my senior year, I realized with a bang that the outgoing, passionate, ambitious, and eminently practical person I had evolved into would be miserable pursuing academia and pouring all of herself into arcane research that would ultimately benefit nobody. I truly wanted to make an impact. I had and have so many things I want to do, to share, to excel in (namely, running a coffee shop and my own photography business--and, before I venture into entrepreneurialism, my corporate dream is to head international expansion and planning for Starbucks), and let’s face it-to accomplish any of those, you need money!
It was thus that I grew to have a positive, forward-thinking view of money and finances, but, still ignorant about the concept of the time value of money and having no idea what the ‘stock market’ was (all I knew was that it involved a lot of guys in suits screaming and waving slips of paper about, and that millions were on the line: I was in the dark as to how any of it worked, or what the paper stood for, or WHY those slips of paper were worth so much), the only way I knew to raise the kind of capital I’d need to start a business, or even buy a home, was to devote myself to and excel in any job I was given until I was promoted enough to make good money, and to diligently manage that money using a budget. Even then, I had a strong aversion to going in debt, and so slowly saving and accumulating cash was the only option.
I wasn’t aware that my personal finances didn’t have to be a passive thing, but could be a proactive, dynamic endeavor, and that through them, I could support companies I respect and believe in (I love that!), that I could ‘plant’ my money and watch it grow. This assignment and these articles (especially The Motley Fool series-their humorous tone and blunt candor won me over in a heartbeat. Plus, I’m a big fan of the “Teach a man to fish…” outlook) have not only introduced me to these concepts, but indoctrinated me into them and educated me regarding them, so that I’m now equipped to make safe, wise investment decisions best tailored to my individual goals and finances.
So what, specifically, are those goals, and how am I going to get prepared for them in the short- and long-term? Well, my first action of business, once I complete all these time-consuming assignments for Business Finance (time-consuming, yes, but I love them! I haven’t ever learned so much of value in such a short span of time) will be to compare discount brokers, consulting my savvy investing friends to get the best deal, and invest $500-$750 in a company I believe in 100%: Starbucks, of course! I’ve been on the inside, and have witnessed firsthand Starbucks’ unfailing passion for their partners, their customers, their growers, and their environment, as well as their commitment to integrity and openness in all their dealings. I’m sure that these qualities will speak for themselves in the stock market, so I’m not concerned about the stock’s performance. A friend recommended that I wait for the stock to go down to $34.00 before I invest, but based on the past performance of SBUX, such a dip may not occur! I’ll get in as soon as I possibly can. After graduation and ‘real’ employment three months from now, I’ll also follow Dr. Tapley’s and my dad’s suggestion, and put 10% of my earnings away in a drip index fund (does a drip fund exist for an index? I need to find out). Such is my short-term plan, but I can’t say what long-term strategies time and the acquisition of greater knowledge will open up to me!
It goes without saying that I’ll avoid any kind of debt unless it becomes absolutely necessary; I’ve been blessed throughout college to have all my tuition and living expenses paid by scholarships and summer employment, and have not once had to take out a loan or make a purchase on credit. When it comes time to replace my car in a couple years, I’ll pay the difference in the trade-in value in cash, and when it comes time to purchase a home not long after that, I’ll have enough of a down payment and a cash cushion saved up that I’ll be able to minimize the crippling effects of a long-term mortgage and high interest rate.
Young Americans are taught from the time they leave the nest that they need to save, save, save, because one day soon, they’ll want to quit the jobs they hated anyway and ease their aching old bodies into rocking chairs, getting up only to occasionally play golf, buy an RV and cruise the state highways, and pontificate about the ‘good old days.’ The action I agree with; the motivation, I do not. It certainly is the wise thing to do to save and plan for your financial future, or better, to create funds to fund your future and help your heirs. However, I can’t stand the emphasis on holing away money so you can spend your old age effectively doing nothing! I love life, and I love doing, producing, and enjoying. A life without those things; i.e. a traditional ‘retirement,’ would be a horrible stagnation to me. Personally, I’m not going to plan for my retirement, but I will plan for my life and make sure that myself and my children (and their children) are well provided for. Nationally, I can’t pretend to say that most people feel the same as I do; some kind of provision needs to be made for people’s futures, and if ‘retirement’ planning is what makes people get up and save, then so be it.
Answering the question of what more I’d like to learn about investing is, at this point, a difficult one! I’m just beginning to get a cogent picture of what investing is and the different investment possibilities open to me. I’d like that picture to take on a clearer shape and solidify, which it should do naturally as I continue to learn, and then I’d like to learn some more objective measures for analyzing particular securities and predicting their futures. Also of help would be the sense to know what investing advice to put stock in (no pun intended) and what to ignore, but I suppose that this sense comes mainly with experience.
Those little changes were mainly painting the background for the real picture, however. My perspective on investing really began to change when, in the summer before my senior year, I realized with a bang that the outgoing, passionate, ambitious, and eminently practical person I had evolved into would be miserable pursuing academia and pouring all of herself into arcane research that would ultimately benefit nobody. I truly wanted to make an impact. I had and have so many things I want to do, to share, to excel in (namely, running a coffee shop and my own photography business--and, before I venture into entrepreneurialism, my corporate dream is to head international expansion and planning for Starbucks), and let’s face it-to accomplish any of those, you need money!
It was thus that I grew to have a positive, forward-thinking view of money and finances, but, still ignorant about the concept of the time value of money and having no idea what the ‘stock market’ was (all I knew was that it involved a lot of guys in suits screaming and waving slips of paper about, and that millions were on the line: I was in the dark as to how any of it worked, or what the paper stood for, or WHY those slips of paper were worth so much), the only way I knew to raise the kind of capital I’d need to start a business, or even buy a home, was to devote myself to and excel in any job I was given until I was promoted enough to make good money, and to diligently manage that money using a budget. Even then, I had a strong aversion to going in debt, and so slowly saving and accumulating cash was the only option.
I wasn’t aware that my personal finances didn’t have to be a passive thing, but could be a proactive, dynamic endeavor, and that through them, I could support companies I respect and believe in (I love that!), that I could ‘plant’ my money and watch it grow. This assignment and these articles (especially The Motley Fool series-their humorous tone and blunt candor won me over in a heartbeat. Plus, I’m a big fan of the “Teach a man to fish…” outlook) have not only introduced me to these concepts, but indoctrinated me into them and educated me regarding them, so that I’m now equipped to make safe, wise investment decisions best tailored to my individual goals and finances.
So what, specifically, are those goals, and how am I going to get prepared for them in the short- and long-term? Well, my first action of business, once I complete all these time-consuming assignments for Business Finance (time-consuming, yes, but I love them! I haven’t ever learned so much of value in such a short span of time) will be to compare discount brokers, consulting my savvy investing friends to get the best deal, and invest $500-$750 in a company I believe in 100%: Starbucks, of course! I’ve been on the inside, and have witnessed firsthand Starbucks’ unfailing passion for their partners, their customers, their growers, and their environment, as well as their commitment to integrity and openness in all their dealings. I’m sure that these qualities will speak for themselves in the stock market, so I’m not concerned about the stock’s performance. A friend recommended that I wait for the stock to go down to $34.00 before I invest, but based on the past performance of SBUX, such a dip may not occur! I’ll get in as soon as I possibly can. After graduation and ‘real’ employment three months from now, I’ll also follow Dr. Tapley’s and my dad’s suggestion, and put 10% of my earnings away in a drip index fund (does a drip fund exist for an index? I need to find out). Such is my short-term plan, but I can’t say what long-term strategies time and the acquisition of greater knowledge will open up to me!
It goes without saying that I’ll avoid any kind of debt unless it becomes absolutely necessary; I’ve been blessed throughout college to have all my tuition and living expenses paid by scholarships and summer employment, and have not once had to take out a loan or make a purchase on credit. When it comes time to replace my car in a couple years, I’ll pay the difference in the trade-in value in cash, and when it comes time to purchase a home not long after that, I’ll have enough of a down payment and a cash cushion saved up that I’ll be able to minimize the crippling effects of a long-term mortgage and high interest rate.
Young Americans are taught from the time they leave the nest that they need to save, save, save, because one day soon, they’ll want to quit the jobs they hated anyway and ease their aching old bodies into rocking chairs, getting up only to occasionally play golf, buy an RV and cruise the state highways, and pontificate about the ‘good old days.’ The action I agree with; the motivation, I do not. It certainly is the wise thing to do to save and plan for your financial future, or better, to create funds to fund your future and help your heirs. However, I can’t stand the emphasis on holing away money so you can spend your old age effectively doing nothing! I love life, and I love doing, producing, and enjoying. A life without those things; i.e. a traditional ‘retirement,’ would be a horrible stagnation to me. Personally, I’m not going to plan for my retirement, but I will plan for my life and make sure that myself and my children (and their children) are well provided for. Nationally, I can’t pretend to say that most people feel the same as I do; some kind of provision needs to be made for people’s futures, and if ‘retirement’ planning is what makes people get up and save, then so be it.
Answering the question of what more I’d like to learn about investing is, at this point, a difficult one! I’m just beginning to get a cogent picture of what investing is and the different investment possibilities open to me. I’d like that picture to take on a clearer shape and solidify, which it should do naturally as I continue to learn, and then I’d like to learn some more objective measures for analyzing particular securities and predicting their futures. Also of help would be the sense to know what investing advice to put stock in (no pun intended) and what to ignore, but I suppose that this sense comes mainly with experience.