By Babajide Komolafe

To some people, the word ‘investment’ sounds big and they see it as something for the educated, or the rich. This, however, is far from the truth. Investment is not the exclusive preserve of any class of people. It is something for everybody.  So anybody can invest, and that includes you.

To invest simply means putting money or resources into an activity that yields income. The aim is to increase whatever you invested (money or materials) so that you can have more in the future. As implied, it starts with saving something today, which means you choose not to consume all or everything you earn.

Thereafter, you search or determine where you want to commit what you have saved, and that can increase its value over time. The act of investing is as old as man, and it occurs at every level of the society in one shape or the other. For example, when Palm Oil is in season, some people buy it in large quantities, and store it till it is no longer in season, and it becomes scarce. They then sell it at a higher price. Consequently, they end up with more money than they had before (all things being equal).

This is investment in Palm Oil trading. Some people invest in other agricultural produce. It is still investment. In some cases, the money is contributed and given to the palm oil trader, who uses the money to do the business and return the money with interest or profit, depending on the agreement.

The principle is the same for all kinds of investment, be it in shares, treasury bills or bonds. The goal is the same, and it is to increase what you have today, by saving it and committing it into an activity that would generate income and increase the value of the money or resources committed into it.

As indicated above, it starts with savings, or deciding not to consume everything you earn. Mind you, it is not about what or how much you earn, it is about decision and discipline.  Many people use their low income as excuse for not saving. But there are examples of low income earners who save and do so regularly. You can start with just N1 per month. Yes N1 per month. With time, you will easily increase it to N2 per month. After deciding to save, the next decision is where to invest the money.

I remember a woman asking for advice on what to invest in. She was considering using her savings to open a provision store. But she was reluctant due to her past experience in this regard.  This is a challenge for many people. As a result, they save but they do not invest. In other words, they just keep the money saved in their bank accounts.  The implication is that the money saved is within their reach to spend, and they eventually spend it.

There are various types of investments anybody can choose from depending on the amount of money you want to invest. Some are formal while some are informal. You can however be sure that there would be at least one type of investment that is suitable for your purpose and capacity.  (To be continued next week)