That is an replace on my mutual fund investing journey, which started on nineteenth June 2008. Within the final three a long time, I’ve gone from being a spendthrift to being in debt to monetary independence.
New group members can refer to those articles for an account. The Monetary Arrow of Time and My Journey: Pushed by the worry of constructing the identical errors once more. My story was featured in Livemint. Additionally, livemint’s guru portfolio guru profile: You solely want a fund the place returns stay constant: Freefincal’s Pattabiraman and its replace – Why Freefincal’s Pattabiraman doesn’t imagine in beating the market.
I want to make clear that that is solely a private milestone, not some earth-shattering occasion. I do know many buyers who’ve invested for many years within the capital market. A lot of them are too reticent to debate their journey. Additionally see: How does it really feel after reaching monetary independence?
There’s a lot to be taught. Be it the inventory market or life, the second you sound like you may have some expertise, you’re going to get kicked to the bottom. The straightforward fact is that life chosen one for me out of one million methods to go from level A to level B in ten years. This doesn’t imply that is the one solution to success (or failure).
Particulars of how I began investing and a few insights on the portfolio development might be present in a earlier account: Fourteen Years of Mutual Fund Investing: My Journey and Classes Discovered.
Right here, I wish to present a fast portfolio replace and re-visit the teachings (most of those, unsurprisingly, are the identical as earlier than).
Retirement Portfolio Replace
That is the expansion of my retirement portfolio in contrast with equivalent purchases and redemptions within the NIfty 50 TRI index as of 14th Aug 2025, created utilizing the freefincal Mutual Funds and Inventory Portfolio Tracker on Google Sheets.
Asset Allocation (roughly)
The fairness MF portfolio
| Fund Title | XIRR | Weight |
| Parag Parikh FlexiCap | 20.36% | 59.19% |
| HDFC Hybrid Balanced | 14.00% | 16.47% |
| QLTE | 13.59% | 11.33% |
| UTI Low Volatility | 13.33% | 13.01% |
The debt portfolio
| Fund Title | XIRR | Weight |
| NPS | 9.07% | 57.41% |
| PPF | not relevant | 11.22% |
| ICICIGilt Rama | 7.19% | 14.31% |
| Parag Parikh Conservative Hybrid Fund | 11.59% | 3.89% |
| Parag Parikh Dynamic Asset Allocation Fund | 7.24% | 9.79% |
| Money (ICICI Arbitrage + Quantum Liquid) | not thought of | 3.38% |
Additionally, see, Analyzing the expansion of my 14-year-old NPS portfolio.
Classes learnt
These are reproduced from final 12 months’s account. If I can name myself profitable, it is just due to three elements
- Luck
- Self-discipline
- prioritized feelings. I used to be extra emotional concerning the lack of monetary independence after retirement than seeing my portfolio in “crimson”. Subsequently, I didn’t monitor my portfolio every day. I didn’t search info daily and fear about it. I let my cash develop peacefully with occasional gardening.
My portfolio development has nothing to do with my skill to decide on “good funds” or my schooling or coaching. By nature, I’m disciplined and hate info.
If I needed to record my classes (even when nobody is asking me to!), they’d be:
1: Get a life! Determine your targets, spend money on them and depart them alone till it’s time in your annual assessment.
2: Eliminate Monetary contacts or teams on WhatsApp, Twitter and Fb. An investor is outlined by her skill to course of info – and the easiest way to try this is to keep away from info. One of the best ways to handle time is to keep away from work (or be taught to say ‘no’).
3: Make investments like your rear finish is on hearth, or life will gentle it up later.
4: In case your wants are far-off and you see a sideways market, pump in cash if potential. That’s the finest time to speculate.
5: Always remember that these beneficial properties are notional. A single occasion can lower your holdings by half. Mountaineers imagine they will climb a peak “if the mountain lets them”. Markets usually are not totally different. Bear in mind, notional losses are actual losses. Solely notional beneficial properties are notional. A goal-based systematic threat administration technique is important.
6: Your perspective in the direction of cash itself and revenue and loss is dependent upon how a lot cash you may have. I’ve seen my portfolio achieve or lose 10s of Rs, 100s –> 1000s —> ….. Alongside the best way, I realised that to achieve success, we want to be taught to lose/achieve lakhs daily and yearn for it.
7: Cash is a drug. The extra you may have, the extra you need to have. So, at some stage, you’ll have to draw the road. Growing the quantity you divulge to assist others on the identical charge at which your portfolio grows will maintain us grounded.
8: To be wealthy, we should first suppose like a wealthy individual. Have a 10Y, 25Y or 35Y 12 months view of your life. Need To Get Wealthy? Write Your self A One Crore Cheque!
9: We can not purchase stuff with returns. Having sufficient cash is extra vital than getting excessive returns; they don’t seem to be the identical. The 2016 Private Finance Audit: Returns don’t matter!
10: Focus on the portfolio return essentially the most. Particular person funds can have their ups and downs. It’s high quality if the portfolio strikes alongside at a wholesome tempo. That is the principle motive for growing the freefincal mutual fund and monetary objective tracker. That is the one sheet I take advantage of to trace my targets and investments.
11: To earn a living, two issues are obligatory: time and cash. Returns usually are not in our management. Those that need to develop into financially free should make investments as if their lives depend upon it. For all others, attempt to make investments for retirement no less than as a lot as you spend or as near it as potential. So ask your self: What’s your investing development charge (CAGR)?
12: Get a correct interest so that you simply neglect about cash. Freefincal is, sadly, my interest. Simply because I write about investing doesn’t imply I have a look at my portfolio every day and tinker with it. Each statue was as soon as a rock. It’ll develop into a rock once more if we have no idea when to cease sculpting.
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Dr M. Pattabiraman(PhD) is the founder, managing editor and first writer of freefincal. He’s an affiliate professor on the Indian Institute of Know-how, Madras. He has over 13 years of expertise publishing information evaluation, analysis and monetary product growth. Join with him through Twitter(X), Linkedin, or YouTube. Pattabiraman has co-authored three print books: (1) You might be wealthy too with goal-based investing (CNBC TV18) for DIY buyers. (2) Gamechanger for younger earners. (3) Chinchu Will get a Superpower! for youths. He has additionally written seven different free e-books on varied cash administration matters. He’s a patron and co-founder of “Price-only India,” an organisation selling unbiased, commission-free aum impartial funding recommendation.
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