So many people tell me (OMG and I politely nod) …here is what I wish to tell them:

Subra, I made money….

a. buy getting ESOPs in my company

b. buy buying a house for Rs. 30 lakhs, now it is worth Rs. 90 lakhs and only Rs. 12 lakhs of the loan is to be repaid.

c. I am investing in Gold for the long term

d. I invested Rs. 70,000 in PPF for the past 15 years and it has grown to….

Let us look at some of them:

You make money when you invest in a good company. If you were lucky to have got a job in Hdfc, Infosys, etc. yes you got ESOPs. Yes you made money by HOLDING on to the ESOP, and yes it has appreciated. Look at the facts:

a. You were lucky / deserved a job in H, I or Wipro.

b. You got the ESOP, you TOOK them (you did it just  because everybody did it)

c. You have still kept it (presumably).

To generalise you got a good share, you invested at good prices, and kept it for a long time.

Now suppose when a company is issuing ESOP and you buy the shares of that company, YOU WILL ALSO make money (without getting the esop).

Best way to make money is:

Create a good portfolio

invest regularly and in small amounts

hold for a long time – while removing the weeds regularly

Esop or otherwise will not matter.

In real estate FIRST learn how to calculate COSTS.

Total cost of a house = Down payment (adjust it for inflation over say 10 years) + emi * no. of months that you paid + other costs (let us say figure ‘A’)

Subtract the SELLING PRICE and reduce this ‘A’ from the sale price. THAT IS THE PROFIT. Please recalculate your profit.