This fund manager is an equal money manager at her home

An early, solid foundation for financial decision-making helped Poonam Tandon, Chief Investment Officer - IndiaFirst Life Insurance Co. Ltd, helm her personal finance in the best possible manner and ensure that her family is “adequately secured”.

Of course, it helps that she has over 26 years of experience across the financial space, and is currently at the forefront of leading investment-related decisions in insurance major IndiaFirst Life, which reportedly has Rs 17,109 Crores of assets under management (AUM) as of FY21.

“It is important that the family is aware of all the assets one has-so that in case of any emergency or unfortunate situation, no one is ignorant or caught unaware,” she said.

"When I was a student, my parents always encouraged me to make my own financial decisions. Hence, it was a natural transition for me to take charge of financial decisions in my married life as well. When it comes to making decisions about money, my husband and I work as a team and jointly resolve matters pertaining to property purchase, health, and life insurance and more," Tandon added.

Why paying off loans at the soonest, helps builds a sound future

While noting that while personal finance choices are a “function of how much money one is earning and out of that, how much one is spending”, Tandon underlined how one must remember some fundamental tenets to always abide by in this regard.

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“In my view, repayment of loans at the earliest to absolve yourself of any liabilities in the later years and sufficient planning for pension should be amongst the top priorities,” she underlined.

Tandon also pointed out how women are especially advantaged in terms of financial planning, given their calm, patient temperament and a natural tendency to be planners and savers.

“All that they need to do is be financially aware and not fall prey to any mis-selling”.

Recounting an incident from the early 2000s, when the prices of gold had undergone a correction of about 25 percent from the peak levels they had touched in the late 1990s, Tandon mentioned how she had highlighted gold to be a good asset class to invest in, given that all assets were experiencing a decline due to a general slowdown. However, her opinion was immediately discounted, since her preference for gold was thought to be a natural reaction due to her gender, rather than having come from an informed space.

“However, that was the lowest price point, post which gold saw a significant uptick. Since investing in gold back then was not an easy endeavour, even I could not properly utilise that opportunity”, she recollects.

The importance of financial education

In addition to investing sensibly and believing in the power of compounding, Tandon wants to see more and more “women and teenagers to become financially educated and updated so that they make the right financial decisions for themselves”.

“Today, women are confident at taking their own spending decisions. Some of them are very financially aware as to where to invest. With progressive career graphs, women in metro cities are also seeking professional advice to help them make informed financial decisions. However, in Tier 3 and 4 cities, women still depend on male family members,” she says.

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“For this, it is important that financial education be imparted at the high school and college level so that women can effectively make their own decisions. Financial markets are interesting because every day is a new challenge. One must be ready to face these unanticipated global and local challenges that impact the market in order to receive inflation-beating returns to investors in the long term. While there are short-term turbulences, it is an enjoyable journey from the long-term perspective”,

To begin with, she suggests sticking to a budget and inculcating the habit of saving to be a good starting point. “We live in a consumerist, social media governed society, where each one is trying to outdo the other in buying “depreciating, short-lived assets like phones, clothes and more”. It is therefore important to stick to a budget so that there is a target on saving a percentage of salary.

“A habit of saving in the children and teaching them the value of money will not only help you in meeting your budget targets but also in maturing into a financially responsible and mature adult”, she signs off