From broke in Asia to successful investor?
From broke in Asia to successful investor?
I'm sick of living in third world countries, can investing give me a way out?
I’m 30 years old and investing is arguably my last chance in life to ever earn enough money to afford nice things. Since graduating from college (psychology degree, learned nothing, partied my way to a 2.8 GPA) I’ve been traveling the world. Russia, Cambodia, India, and a dozen others in-between.
In that time I’ve read hundreds of books, listened to more than a thousand podcasts and generally attempted to make myself into a human being of some worth. Where I’ve lagged, however, is in earning power. For the last eight years (apart from a brief period of employment at a startup) I’ve supported myself with various online jobs, often earning an annual income that puts me below the poverty line in America.
As I age, I’ve realized that I don’t want to spend the rest of my life in third world countries. The heat, corruption, shitty roads, lawlessness, bad healthcare and chickens around every bend. I believe that investing may be the best opportunity I have to avoid the dreaded 9-to-5, while also being able to afford luxuries such as health insurance, steak dinners and pour-over coffee.
Why investing?
I did not pick investing from a hat, or have it bequeathed upon me like a bride upon an Indian husband. I have a long history of dedicating myself to endeavors which I subsequently fail at. I know what it’s like to practice an activity full steam ahead for a year or two, and show so little progress that it’s obvious there’s no future glory to be had.
Although it’s been unpleasant to (repeatedly) come to the realization that I’ll never amount to anything in a given field, I cherish those experiences because they gave me the insight to understand the inverse. Learning what it is to have no hope, has given me an ability to identify where hope does reside. Through failure I’ve come to appreciate success. Here’s a brief account of why I believe I could do well in investing.
The time I couldn’t afford to eat
To give a sense of my starting point I’ll take you back to South East Asia, to a sprawling metropolis of sun-block smog, miles of traffic and fried noodles on the street. There in the big city, on a fine February day in 2016, I ran out of money. Nothing, zippo, zilch. I was expecting a $190 deposit but due to the laughable state of our antiquated banking system, my small paycheck wouldn’t clear till the weekend was through.
I didn’t eat for 36 hours.
So it is that my investing career began in Asia on an empty stomach. At the time of my enforced fasting,
My total liquid assets equaled less than $1.00
My total illiquid assets equaled approximately $6,000 invested in a mutual fund. This was a gift from my grandparents, god bless them
I didn’t know what a bond was, had never heard of a yield curve, knew nothing of earnings multiples nor had I ever taken any classes in finance or investing
Fast forward seven years
Over the course of half a decade I’ve multiplied that $6,000 many times over. I am now sitting on cash position that while by no means large, is big enough that if I invest it wisely, it could become something large. I believe that through a combination of incessant learning, correct position sizing and a contrarian outlook, I can make a name for myself.
This Substack will chronicle the investment journey. Success is by no means assured, however, I have a powerful motivation to make it work. As I alluded to earlier, the ships have been burned. I have no career to fall back on, no shining sinecure beckoning from just over the horizon. If I fail, I can look forward to a future of tropical monsoons, motorcycles and $2 lunches.
Where we’ll go
In the coming months and years I want to explore topics such as,
The skills that I believe make for a successful investor
The question of position sizing. All your eggs in one basket and guard it carefully, or diversify across asset classes?
An overview of my trades, the successes and failures
Creating a unique approach that blurs the line between trading & investing
Critical thinking, dogma, the inadvisability of strong beliefs
My investment goals
My favorite investing books, podcasts and articles
My gripe with gold investing
Thinking clearly in an age of insanity
Societal trends and their effect on the markets
And many other topics. Stick around, this should be fun.
The Unhedged Capitalist