What has Covid-19 Taught Us About Investing?

Covid-19 has taught us a great deal about investing. Most of us young people (and this chat is with young people) have never witnessed times like this before. We only read about the great depression almost as an event that happened in a distant land. Our understanding of what it practically means for an economy to be in recession has only been shaped by books. This opportunity is therefore valuable in learning how dramatic times and seasons could change investment outcomes. To know there are times when investments do well and there are times when they are threatened. Times and seasons happen to them all according to the Holy Bible!

Circumstances that can affect investments are not only Covid-19 experiences or Acts of God but also artificial! In fact, more investments are threatened by human factors than natural occurrences. A practical example in Ghana was the effect of the financial sector cleanup where many investments have been affected. But instances like those we face today are more dramatic because while bad economies, recession, bubble bursts, and other artificial factors do announce their arrival through various warnings; Covid-19 and the like do not. Need to say they are rare and near millennial events.

Covid-19 teaches us that our choice of investments should include asset classes that are least affected during a crisis. That our portfolios; irrespective of how little, can’t be only short-term and highly liquid securities but a cocktail of hard and soft liquor. And that even we; young people should consider long-term securities that are more stable and resilient. Really, we have more years ahead of us and can afford to even lose investment and still have enough time to recover.

Fixed Deposits are great but a lot more exist! Short-term benefits are ok, but the long haul is important too! What about Stocks, Bonds, Commodities, and Real Estate? These alternative investment vehicles are now easier than before and could be explored by even young people who may not have so much money.

Covid-19 tells us that diversification is key; you should not put all your eggs in a basket! This is true because, in times like this, not all investments are equally affected. No matter how little your funds are, it’s advisable to consider other investment vehicles. When putting away money for profit, determine to have stability and liquidity. You should have funds in vehicles that are not easily shaken as as you may have in more volatile instruments. Short-term instruments such as fixed deposits are liquid but volatile. So when you have investments in volatile and less volatile instruments, the net effect of the two investments is greater stability.

All investments are affected by the general health of the economy and times like this. The bottom line is that some investments are hardest hit than others.