My worst financial mistakes - How I lost $50,000

Over the last 10 years I’ve made some shocking financial decisions! Whether it’s getting a car lease, investing in the sharemarket to try and become a millionaire overnight, not consolidating my superannuation or wasting money on University courses I wasn’t really interested in. I’ll run through them all and show you how it resulted in me wasting about $50,000 of my own money in the last 10 years. I hope the mistakes I’ve made will be useful for you and

Timestamps:
0:00 - Introduction
0:55 - Investing to become a millionaire overnight
2:43 - Enrolling in university units and courses because I was bored
4:23 - Not consolidating my superannuation accounts
5:38 - Getting a car lease, when I already had a car
8:53 - Not having a proper financial plan in my life

First: Investing in the stock market to get rick “overnight”
There are so many examples of me investing in the ASX sharemarket where I thought it would be great to invest in stocks that were under $1 and then expecting them to rocket up 10 or 100 times! This never happened even though I invested in childcare companies, mining companies, satellite companies. I always thought this new stock would be the one. Some of these companies have since been delisted (taken off the stock exchange!). Now I’m more considered and only really invest in ETFs (Exchange Traded Funds) from companies like Vanguard or BlackRock or LICs (Listed Investment Companies) such AFIC (Australian Foundation Investment Company).

I’ve also done a video on ETFs if you’re interested. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9S5-fnrghp0

Second: Spending money on University units and courses that I wasn’t committed to
In Australia for your university or tertiary education, the Australian government will pay for your education upfront as long as you agree to paying them back at some point in the future through your tax dollars. After I completed my undergraduate degree and started working full-time, there were multiple times where I enrolled in units and courses I wasn’t committed to. Some were in the arts, some were in global security and even some were in corporate finance. There was this one unit that I enrolled in 3 times and failed each time. I still don’t know why they let me enrol 3 times.

Third: Having multiple superannuation accounts
Over the last 10 years I had accumulated close to 6 different superannuation accounts. This was because through my university years I did a lot of internships, each of which had its own superannuation company. It’s now very easy to find your superannuation accounts and consolidate them through MyGov and contacting your Superannuation account manager for help.

The ATO has a site for more info: https://www.ato.gov.au/individuals/super/growing-your-super/keeping-track-of-your-super/

Fourth: Getting a car lease, when I already had a car
This was a shocker! I basically bought a brand new car using a car lease…even though I already owned a car. Simply because I wanted a new ute (truck in the US) and thought a car lease would be a great way to fund it. Don’t get me wrong, under certain circumstances car leases can be great. But just not when you already have a car and you want and excuse to get another one. This was by far…my biggest regret financially. It set me back so many years.

Fifth: Generally not having a financial plan
I’m currently in my 30s. A lot of my friends made financial plans when they were in their 18,19s and early 20s. They then diligently followed these through and are now starting to see the fruits of it. At the same time I was wasting time buying new cars and investing in the sharemarket trying to become rich overnight. I’ve smartened up since.

Total loss:
$30,000 + $5,000 + $1,000 +$6,000 = $42,000

Over 5 years at 5% p.a compounded in say the Stockmarket through index funds etc is about $53,000.

The last 10 years of my life were terrible financially. The next 10 years will be better! Please learn from my mistakes.

Sound Sources:
Typewriter sound: http://soundbible.com/853-Typewriter-And-Bell.html
Cash Register sound: https://www.freesoundslibrary.com/cash-register-sound-effect/

Stock video from Pexels. Videos by cottonbro, Kelly Lacy, fauxels Pressmaster, Ricardo Esquivel, Altea Alessandroni, WeStarMoney, Subscribe on YouTube, Sound On, ftock.com - Free Stock Footage from Pixabay

Disclaimer:
The information provided in this video is general in nature only and does not constitute personal financial advice. You should also consider seeking the advice of an investment advisor who holds an Australian financial services (AFS) licence or is a representative of an AFS licensee. Be sure to work with someone who understands your investment objectives and tolerance for risk. Your investment advisor should understand these products, be able to explain whether or how they fit with your objectives, and be willing to monitor your investment alongside you.

Видео My worst financial mistakes - How I lost $50,000 канала Sanjee Sen