What School Taught You That’s Draining Your Wallet (And What To Do Instead)

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Key Takeaways Schools often prioritize academic skills over practical financial knowledge. Financial struggles may stem from gaps in education, not personal failure. Money skills like budgeting and investing aren’t widely taught in school but are learnable. Your degree is not your destiny, it's a tool. Your skills drive wealth. You can close the gap by learning real-world finance skills now.       You learned to solve for X, but not how to value your time. You memorized the causes of World War I, but not how to budget for rent. Years of school gave you a certificate, but did it equip you to build a life?  You studied economics, yet struggle with taxes; read Shakespeare, yet can’t negotiate a salary.It’s not entirely your fault. School prioritized certain skills over others—some valuable, some less so for financial independence. The real test isn’t algebra or literature—it’s managing rent, savings, taxes, and securing your freedom. And you were set up to f...
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Fastest Way To Understanding Investing Basics: For Beginners

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Key Takeaways

  • Investing is not your first step—income is.
  • Investing starts with mindset, not money.
  • Start small, but start with strategy, not winging it or a gamble.
  • Understand risk levels: low, medium, high.
  • Not all investment types are equal. Match them with your goals and reality.
  • Don’t invest EVERYTHING you have.
  • Compound growth beats instant gains.

Table of Contents

  1. The Psychology of First Time Investors 
  2. Jide's Investing Journey
  3. How to Start: Step-by-Step Plan
  4. Types of Investments
  5. How to Assess Your Readiness to Invest
  6. Common Misconceptions 
  7. Tools & Resources for Beginner Investors
  8. Glossary for Newbies

THE PSYCHOLOGY OF FIRST TIME INVESTORS 

New and sometimes old investors battle:
1. FOMO: Fear of Missing Out

2. Overconfidence: Thinking you’re the exception

3. Impatience: Expecting results overnight

4. Guilt/Shame: Feeling unworthy of wealth

    These emotions can make you sabotage yourself. Investing isn't just a financial game—it's an emotional one. If you don’t understand your money habits, your investments will mirror your self-sabotage.

JIDE'S INVESTING JOURNEY

     Jide was tired. Tired of being broke. Tired of watching people on social media flaunt their wealth while he barely had enough data to scroll through their posts.
He had just saved up $100, and to him, that was a big deal. It wasn’t much, but it was his.

“This is it,” he thought. “I’ll invest this money and start making millions in no time.”

Excited, he called his closest friend, Damien. “Bro, I have $100. I want to invest. Where should I put the money?” Jide asked, expecting Dami to be happy for him.
But Dami only smiled and said, “Invest in yourself first.”

Jide’s excitement crashed.
“What do you mean ‘invest in myself’?” he snapped. “look Damien, I know I’m poor but I also know that People are making money investing. I want to invest too!”

Damien leaned back. “Bro, if you invest $100 now, there’s a 99% chance you’ll lose it and end up even more broke. You need cash flow first. Build something that makes you money before trying to grow it. What about your side hustle”

Jide felt insulted. Was Damien saying he didn’t know what he was doing? Or worse, was he jealous because he didn’t have money?

He ended the call and decided he wouldn’t take advice from someone who was rich.
 “all this rich people are wicked. He will not help me invest or give me money but now that I have suffered to get this one, he still won’t help me. He's just jealous that I would be richer than him”, Jide said to himself .

ONE WEEK PASSED.

Jide stopped calling Damien or even answering his calls. But, deep down, he couldn’t shake off his words. So, instead of investing, he doubled down on his side hustle—graphic design. He hustled harder than ever, taking on clients, working long hours, and stacking every dollar he earned.

One Year later, he had $3,500 in his account. And for the first time in a year, he messaged Damien. “HELLO Bro, I have $3,500 now. I don’t want to hear anything, Let’s invest.”

Damien was genuinely happy to hear from him. “That’s amazing, man! I’m so happy for you! Now we can get started….. But quick question—do you have any savings? Are your expenses covered?”

Jide paused. “No. This is all I have. But if I invest this one, I’ll make millions in no time, I have a good feeling about this.”

Damien chuckled. “I love your spirit but slow down guy, let’s start with $1,000.”
Jide frowned. “Are you sure that’s enough? Let’s make it $2,500 at least”

“Bro $1,000 is More than enough,” Damien nodded. “We are investing not gambling, there’s a difference.”

STEP 1: DEFINING A GOAL

Damien explained that the first step to investing wasn’t money—it was mindset and goals. “What do you want?” Damien asked.

Jide thought for a moment. “I want to stop being broke. I want to be able to afford things without begging or waiting for salary day.”

“That’s a good start,” Damien said. “Now, let’s build on that.”

STEP 2: CHOOSING THE RIGHT INVESTMENT

Damien broke it down:

TYPES OF INVESTMENTS

1. Low Risk(Slow Growth): Fixed deposits, bonds, savings account, mutual funds and Treasury bills.

2. Medium Risk(Steady Growth): Real estate, REITs, Stocks, ETFs, Agro investments and P2P lending.

3. High Risk(High Reward): Crypto, forex trading, leveraged assets and startups.

“Which one feels right for you?” Damien asked. Jide thought about it. “I want fast money like forex, but I also don’t want to lose everything overnight.”

STEP 3: STARTING WITH MONEY

Damien immediately got serious. “look, the most important thing is to go in with the thought that in fact you can lose everything. That’s why I didn’t tell you to use all your money!”

Jide was a little bit scared but also confused, “guy, I don’t get is it that you want me to lose everything? This thing is getting complicated”

Damien smiled “nothing will go 100% right, 100% of the time. you can invest $1,000 and get $5,000 today then tomorrow invest $5,000 and get $0… nothing. Do you understand me now”

Jide thought about his words and said “hmmm.. WISDOM!!!”. So, Jide picked an investment —forex.

STEP 4: LEARNING AND MAKING MISTAKES

Four Months later,

Although he lost $500 at the start , he got 10x his money. $500 had turned into $5,000. Jide was ready to go all in again, but Damien stopped him.

“Now, we take $2,000 and put it in a stable asset. Something long-term. Something that grows steadily.”

This time, Jide listened immediately. With Damien’s help, he put his money into real estate.

STEP 5: GROWING YOUR ASSETS

Fast Forward Three Years,

 Jide now earns $200,000 yearly from rental income and trades a $1,000,000 account.

….And to think he wanted to throw his first $100 into a risky investment that would have left him even more broke.
Jide learned the easy way that investing isn’t about rushing in—it’s about building wealth the smart way. DON’T LEARN THE HARD WAY.

LESSON?

1. First, build cash flow or have enough income to cover at least 3-6 months of expenses.

2. Gain more knowledge on any asset you choose to invest in.

3. Look for mentors that would show you the ropes.

4. Then, invest strategically.

5. Long-term wealth is greater than quick profits.

HOW TO ACCESS YOUR READINESS TO INVEST 

  • Can I emotionally handle losing money?
  • Am I willing to learn before earning?
  • Why do I want to invest?
  • Do I have emergency savings?

Download our FREE Investing Starter Kit to help you take your first steps.

COMMON MISCONCEPTIONS

1. I Need A Little Amount Of Money To Invest: A lot of companies sell the idea of making $10,000 with $10. This highly depends on your skill level. Whether you start with $10 or $100, a beginners chance of losing everything is incredibly high. 

2. Quick Money Is Smart Investing: If it's quick, it's probably gambling or has a high risk-reward ratio that would require a higher level of skills to manage.

3. Diversify Always: Diversification is a concept that has been wildly misunderstood. Putting all your eggs in different baskets that all burn in the same fire is not protection—it’s illusion. It’s about protecting and growing your income—not splitting it into weaker parts. It is also tied to your risk appetite 

4. Following Trends Blindly: If everyone is running in or out, you might want to pause.

5. Once You Invest, You’re Set: You must monitor and adjust regularly.

       Now, when people ask Jide how to invest with little to no money, he simply smiles and says, “Invest in yourself first.”😉

Next up, Are your money habits making you rich or keeping you poor?(Be the first to know!)

If you loved this story, you’d like other stories on Building wealth. We'd love to know your thoughts in the comments. Follow us on social media for amazing updates, finance tips, quotes and more! See you soon 🥰 

Tools & Resources for Beginner Investors
Glossary for Newbies

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