As an Investor, here are some tips I wish I knew earlier in my investing journey. The most important of them all for me was overlooking fees. And this cut very deeply into my Return on investment (ROI).

I don’t want you making the same mistakes I made and thus I’ve put together this list to help you on your investment journey.

1. Overlooking investment fees

There are a wide variety of investment fees. While you will have to pay some to invest, others you can avoid. Any time you buy or sell an investment, you pay transaction costs.

Since investment fees are often deducted automatically from your accounts, it can be easy to overlook them. They may sound small and insignificant as a percentag, but they make a big difference over time.Fees and other related costs are just part of investing. You pay for the funds you invest in, and you pay for the help to manage them. But that doesn’t mean you should pay more than you have to.

Remember, the less you pay in investment fees, the more of your returns you get to keep.

2. Not having an investment plan

Investment planning is very important before investing because it provides direction and meaning to one’s financial decisions.

Making a smart investment makes our financial life better. It will help you understand what type of investor you are and what investment vehicles you need to achieve your financial goals and secure your future financially.

Investors who just go with the flow or invest in what other people are investing in and have no clear understanding of the “why” behind their investments will not develop a disciplined approach that results in success.

3. Not diversifying your portfolio

Diversification reduces risks, smooths out returns and improve long-term portfolio performance.

Consider an appropriate mix of investments.

By including different asset categories in your investment portfolio.

Market conditions that cause one asset category to do well often cause another asset category to have average or poor returns. By investing in more than one asset category, you’ll reduce the risk of losing money and your portfolio’s overall investment returns will even out.

4. Do not time the market

Going back and forth between trading and investing can be detrimental to your success. Investing is simple: You’re gradually building wealth over a lifetime.

Most Investors have a hard time with this, and engage in trading for instant gratification. They become obsessed with the high and find themselves chasing it more than experiencing it.

It’s been proven time and again that investors are horrible at timing the market.

Time in the market is better than timing the market.

5. You are scared of investing

Most of us have heard stories about people losing their money in failed investments. Reach out to reliable and expert financial advisors who can help you plan your investment portfolio based on your financial goals and risk appetite.

You can also talk to them about diversifying your portfolio, spreading your investments across a range of aggressive, high-risk and conservative, low-risk asset classes. This may potentially help to mitigate risk while maximising returns.

6. Emotional Investing

Making investment decisions based on fear or greed rather than logic and analysis can lead to poor outcomes. It’s important to stick to a well-thought-out investment strategy and not let emotions drive decisions.

To succeed as an investor, it’s essential to diversify your portfolio to spread risk, avoid making emotional decisions, and refrain from attempting to time the market. Additionally, understanding and minimizing fees, along with having a clear investment plan tailored to your goals, risk tolerance, and time horizon, are key factors in achieving long-term financial success.