Making My Plan Work: “I'm not a finance guy—but I'm a self-directed investor”

Brandon, a goals-focused investor and RBC employee, sat down with us recently to talk “investing truths." Here's some of what he had to say.

Q: Brandon, what's your investing story?

A: I've been a self-directed investor for seven or eight years, but I actually didn't plan to go the direct investing route. I started with an advisor, but after a few years I decided to make the switch. Once I went out on my own, I found I was making better decisions for me. I mean, I just know myself better. I'm really independent, so when it came to direct investing, that was really the big draw. I enjoy the research and looking for ideas and inspiration.

Q: What was your motivation to start investing?

A: I mean I guess it depends on what you mean by motivation. Growing up, my parents were always teaching me and my brother the value of saving regularly and living within our means. So I think that was really motivational. I was fortunate to have that sort of early learning. But in terms of what motivates me now, I like being able to tick off a box that says, "Yeah, I'm working towards this, and working towards this..." That's what motivates and drives me. I want to achieve my goals.

Q: Do you get nervous when making your own investment decisions?

A: It doesn't really make me nervous. I think I've gotten to a point now where I'm pretty confident in knowing myself and how I invest. I think I'm pretty good at staying within my power. I'm not going outside of my risk tolerance.

Q: What advice would you give someone just starting out?

A: For somebody that's just starting, it's important to sit down and think about what you want your future to look like. I know it's pretty intimidating to think about what your goals for your money are, but I think it's the first step to developing a plan. It's hard to make progress if you don't know what you want out of your financial situation. When picturing your goals, it doesn't have to be 50 years out. It can be five, it can be 10, but it's just getting that initial starting point.

Q: What influences your investing decisions?

A: I'm a bit of a news junkie, so I follow a lot of news about the companies that I invest in. I like to get to know them before I invest. A lot of the time I already have prior knowledge of a company or I use their products.

Q: What's the hardest part about investing?

A: In my opinion I think it's fine to have your money sitting there while you figure out what you want and what your goals are. I think the hardest part for most people is to really surrender. Putting aside that extra couple hundred, or thousand, dollars from their chequing account and moving it into an account that they won't touch. I think it's a cycle. There's a psychological barrier there where you now say, "I don't have that anymore." You still do, it's just in a different way. That's why I'm a huge fan of savings because I never see that money. I think that's actually the biggest barrier to getting people to invest — is getting them to set money aside and be comfortable with saving. I'm at a point now where I have a good investment base. I keep monitoring my portfolio but I kind of set it, forget it and just keep adding money to it to watch my money grow.