Escape the hamster wheel: Investing:

Invest your money or stay in the rat race

If you finished level 1, you probably have money left each month which must be used for level 2 which is all about investing. While level 1 was all about getting rid of liabilities and responsibilities. Level 2 is about what to do with the money since it will not work for you if it is not invested. There are several methods to invest your money in order to generate passive income. Which one you prefer depends on your preferences. Some are in love with real estates while others like me prefer the stock market. Other people use the money to create businesses. Examine where your strenghts are and choose the investment which best fits your ability. For example my brother is very skilled in hand craft and also has connections to craftsmen. He knows how to work on real estates in order to improve the quality. But he avoids the stock marked since it looks too complicated for him. All those charts and numers confuse him. So he chooses real estate over everything else.

On the other side, I am absolutely terrible in everything craft related (unless the computer does the work for me). Also I spend 95% of my time in front of a computer screen. As game developer I work with numbers and mathematics, coding and a ton of analytical problem solving. Since I have absolutely zero knowledge about real estate and no important connections, it is better for me to avoid buying real estate directly. For me the stock market is much more attractive.

Investment option 1: Yourself

With the excess money from level 1, you can invest in yourself which means try to get healthy and learn skills which you can sell. Optionally you can cut down the working hours so you have more free time which can be used to hone skills or learn new, more valuable skills. Never forget that time is the most valuable substance in this universe! Also remember that everything requires knowledge so you must invest into yourself first else you will lose money with any investment. Even pl

If you fail this, you will lose money with any investment.

Investment option 2: Real Estate

You can buy real estate and get cashflow with rents or gain money by reselling. Like everywhere, you first need to gain knowledge about the laws, taxes, fees and how this business works. Also in some countries you can use dept to leverage the investment and has tax advantages.

If you fail this, leaving the continent may be the only way out 🙂

Investment option 3: Stock Market

Investing into the stock market also needs knowledge. There are many ways you could invest into: Stock, ETF, ETC, Bonds, CFD. The possibilities are huge and filled with traps! You need to know which broker is the most suitable for you. Your local bank probably is very expensive. You also have to consider in which product you want to invest into. Managed Funds have high maintenance fees which will lower the yield so I choose ETFs instead. Other stuff like CFDs have High Risk/High Reward. Also you should have a diversified stock portfolio in order to lower the risk. You have to know how charts work, how markets work and which assets exist: Stocks, Real Estate, Raw Materials, Government Bonds. All have different risk/reward ratios. Also the value of your stocks can be very volatile and will punish you if you are psychological unstable.

If you fail this, you will lose money or go into dept.

Investment option 4: Creating your own business

Creating your own business can be the riskiest investment possible. If it works, you are rich, else you go broke. Create your business in a field you really like and be willing to spend hours every day into it. For me I love game development so a business in this field is the best option for me. Sometimes creating a business costs you no money but time only (Software Development). A business can also grow slowly as it is more importent to work consistently improving it and not giving up.

Summary:

So all together level 2 is all about what to do with excess money you probably gained by lowering your monthly expenses. Invest into yourself first. Then either buy time or invest into real-estate, stock market or create your own company. Level 2 is a very long level and may be the most difficult level. Sometimes game developers often make the second level more difficult than the next 20 levels. I am currently in level 2 since I know how to save and how to invest.