How I Invest (I'm a financial adviser)

#meaningfulmoney #meaningfulacademy #buildwealth
There are a million people on KZbin, on Social, even down the pub - wanting to tell you HOW TO INVEST. I’ve been a financial adviser for 20 years - you’d think, therefore, that I should know what I’m doing. So let me tell you how I invest my own money.
0:00 Introduction
1:12 1 - Context
3:10 2 - How I Invest
7:38 3 - Lessons Learned
7:47 -- Lesson 1 - Businesses & Bricks
8:49 -- Lesson 2 - Keeping Costs & Tax Low
9:23 -- Lesson 3 - A Proven Process
10:21 Summary
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Leave me a comment below - I read all of them and love hearing from you!

[@sommersalt88]

Hi Pete, I have about 100k distributed across various investing accounts, with 35% of my capital invested in an ISA and 25% in index funds. In Q4, 2023, I suffered a great deal. I'm just searching for methods to get better in 2024 right now.

[@Lewyn298]

I believe a healthy portfolio has 3 things, at the bare minimum: Exposure to ETFs for increased diversification, Exposure to assets that generate cash flow like dividend stocks, Exposure to market-leading tech.

[@blaquopaque]

Everyone needs a Margin of Safety in their portfolios and just remember, It's time in the market versus timing the market.

[@kansasmile]

Generally speaking, I started investing on my own and for a long time, the market was really ripping me off. I decided to hire a CFA, even though I was skeptical at first, and I beat the market by more than 9%. I thought it was a fluke until it happened two years in a row, and so I’ve been sticking to investing via an advisor.

[@sommersalt88]

I'm intrigued by this. I've searched for financial advisors online but it's kind of hard to get in touch with one. Okay if I ask you for a recommendation?

[@kansasmile]

There are a handful of experts in the field. I've experimented with a few over the past years, but I've stuck with ‘’Jennifer Leigh Hickman” for about five years now, and her performance has been consistently impressive. She’s quite known in her field, look-her up.

[@jf3490]

A financial adviser who’s down to earth and who you’d actually want to go for a pint with - top bloke, cheers for the helpful and insightful video.

[@AbenaAsamoa]

He truly is! He put up a post to meet up with a few of his Insta followers sometime in 2019 whilst he was in London.

[@TheJGTANK]

Most underrated comment on here

[@TomSzczepanski]

As a Chartered Accountant and someone who comes into contact with financial advisors (good and bad) - this guy absolutely gets it, listen to him.

[@andrewmartin5799]

His services are free and I trust him i invested and got my payout Won’t stop the good recommendation getting close to 7btc now !

[@markoutram001]

So refreshing to hear advisors preach simplicity, it’s the same as fitness, keep it simple, keep it consistent and the results will come!

[@VanillaCherryBread]

A good CFP brought me over here and seeing you as a certified financial advisor you have a new sub. Great content!

[@euripidesmedea5585]

Having worked in financial services for a long time, it's great to see someone in the profession give such clear, sensible guidance. Everyone should have access to this sort of information.

[@pauljones5403]

I’m new to this channel, no waffle, straight talking and no hard sell… keep up the great videos

[@NandishPatelV]

Exactly what I've been doing for five decades. Thanks Pete. KeepSmiling 😊🌺

[@richlane64]

What a refreshingly informative video. Love how you keep it all so simple.

[@RT-xn7pr]

YES! Great video Pete, well produced and simple to follow; thanks.

[@MrSwanseajames]

A financial advisor - someone who invests your money until its all gone. Vanguard tracker. Job done.

[@MeaningfulMoney]

Not all of us.

[@michaelfleming8517]

Good stuff. Simple. Authentic. Honest. Really good of you to share so openly. Thanks! M

[@maxdoyle903]

Nice to hear financial advice from a relatable person, essentially reinforces my own views. It’s not pretty or glamorous but after 10-20 years you’ll be winning.

[@camsham76]

Yes. Your videos are a great resource to quickly get up to speed on this this stuff. Thank you!

[@mairien2955]

Super, super helpful! Thank you so much for your generosity in sharing this Pete. I’ve listened carefully to your podcasts and actioned my financial plan accordingly, but this provided all the reassurance I needed to feel like I’m on the right track, as well as giving me some extra goals to aspire to, thank you!

[@MeaningfulMoney]

I’m really glad it was helpful, Mairie!

[@johndupont8596]

@@MeaningfulMoney Would be keen to see an interview of Robin Powell :) He just released a new book!

[@johncaskie7501]

Watched a few of your videos. Great advice and no get rich quick nonsense. I have a degree in Economics and an MSc in Finance and your advice is spot on. If you are 30 yrs old please listen to this man. He will save you a lot of money. What I really appreciate though are the details on regulations and taxation on Pensions and Isas (on some of your other videos) which are not my area of expertise. I have some thinking to do!!

[@maltesetony9030]

Excellent video - honest & useful.

[@highlandutilities]

Just found your channel, really like your 'easy' style.. You look like a great person to go to for financial advice

[@hooksforestchin]

Excellent as ever and very open and honest

[@nickdaveygiant]

Recently discovered your channel and what a gem your channel is. Thank you!! You have already transformed my financial life in 2 days including helping me clear some of my debt! I hope your channel gets the exposure it deserves!

[@MeaningfulMoney]

Very kind, NDG, thank you!

[@callumtimbrell3702]

Great video Pete! Keep up the amazing work.

[@playingFTSE]

Hey Pete. Sounds like our pensions are set up pretty similarly except I just skipped the tilting and went straight global index. My ISA however would probably keep you up at night, it's a stock pickers portfolio! Great content, thanks for sharing!

[@uanfindlewis3852]

Great video Pete. As always really clear & straightforward. Looking forward to watching more new videos.

[@MeaningfulMoney]

Thank you, Uanfind!

[@user-yi5xb2py7k]

Thank you for your information & transparency. I’m 24 & because of your videos I’ve opened a S&S ISA with Vanguard & invest monthly

[@MeaningfulMoney]

You'll be very wealthy one day as a result - great work, and keep going!

[@JoshuaWalker]

Hats off for being so transparent!

[@petethomas7164]

Strikes me as a genuine and helpful guy....who actually enjoys what he does and sharing that joy. Wish there were more like Pete in this world. Boring....is good! Keep it simple. Respect😂

[@Watchlover371]

Love this video / simple and accurate from someone who does it for a living. I do agree with the tracker approach / it’s safe, cheap and can be carried out by anyone. I would say I am more financially aware than the average joe. My Isa is in a particular fund / wouldn’t classify it as high risk and have averaged 18% over the last 11 years. This costs me 1%. Surely this would be worthwhile versus the average tracker fund where costs are 0.05% but returns are 10-12%!?

[@mercenary1015]

Good solid advice on investing. I am a big fan of J.L. Collins and invest in passive global index funds. Your vlog on company sharesave schemes was particularly useful as I have that option and was concerned I was becoming over invested in my company. Thanks for the insight.

[@lodersracing]

Very interesting, thanks for sharing.

[@PrinciplesPersonalFinance]

Really respect how candid this video is. Advisers should have to do this when disclosing their TOB 😊. Would be interesting to see how many practice what they preach! I’m a big fan of the core and satellite approach as well. Keep up the great work! 👏👏👏

[@MeaningfulMoney]

Cheers, George! I’d love to see a proper fiduciary standard emerge here too…

[@rogerandout808]

YES. Also, I really enjoy this channel's content, authenticity and production values.

[@MeaningfulMoney]

And I appreciate you being here, Roger - thank you! 🙏🏻

[@mvp_kryptonite]

Thanks for the video. Just shows that it’s the principle that’s important and people should take snippets and apply it to themselves. Excellent!

[@Kefford666]

Thank you for the info and perspective 🙏🏻 I’m really surprised you don’t have more subscribers and views! All in good time ☺️

[@Premier_lawns_official]

This is a really helpful video, as someone mid 40's no pension and for the first time have some spare money to save. The more I see it is firing it into index funds

[@quwipyui6519]

nothing helpful unfortunately

[@jonathanhowson6420]

I drive a Toyota aygo as well. I have had it since I was at uni 12 years ago and it wont die! Very cost effective. I put £333 a month into my lifetime stocks and shares isa, which is what a lot of people pay on a car payment each month.

[@MeaningfulMoney]

Mine gets appropriated by my daughter these day sand she pays me to use it!

[@coderider3022]

Really appreciate the detail, thank you.

[@stephenbastians732]

What can i say? Perfect! Advice everyone should hear.

[@noahcrafting]

Thanks Pete, great video. Interesting about the % of net worth I’ll have to do some calcs myself

[@roblowry9457]

Yes - great stuff. Thanks for sharing Pete.

[@MeaningfulMoney]

Glad you enjoyed it, Rob!

[@YourGirlSudanny]

Love this! Businesses & Bricks! Need to get to thinking!

[@dawnmartyne]

Yes. Great helpful

[@jblue2435]

Really appreciate this. Gives me skme confidence in my own situation.

[@highwayman01]

Nice Video. I have been an Adviser for 30 years in South Africa still working as i love what I do.

[@kapzvara5732]

Great ideas thanks for this.

[@darylhughes7824]

Great advice. Thank you.

[@stuartogden1660]

Probably my favourite video of yours - great to have the personal angle

[@MeaningfulMoney]

Cheers Stuart - it seems to have been well received generally. Thanks for watching!

[@christhorpec]

Really enjoy your channel and podcast, very down the earth and straightforward. Thank you!

[@MeaningfulMoney]

Very kind of you to say, Christopher, thank you! 👍🏻🙏🏻

[@FinanceDee]

Enjoyed watching this! I invest similarly to you, boring but easy and stress free 😊

[@michaelcaldwell3709]

Thanks

[@andrewkirwin4910]

Love all your videos and listen to your podcasts consecutively on long drives daily, thanks for your efforts

[@MeaningfulMoney]

Thanks for your support, Andrew!

[@benvosloo2033]

What is the podcast called?

[@mikeroyce8926]

I'd love to watch a video on what you hope your eldest daughter would do if she listened to you (eg allocating money to a workplace pension vs emergency fund vs help to buy ISA vs stocks and shares ISA and when to start an income protection plan etc). I am convinced that making great financial decisions in your twenties can help build wealth more than anything else (eg allocating gifts of money into a SIPP as well asa workplace pension and then investing the pension in equity index funds). I have managed to persuade my daughter (just graduated from uni) to read some guides that I have written for her on 1) Income Tax, National Insurance and Capital Gains Tax and 2) Wills and Probate and 3) Inheritance Tax.

[@MeaningfulMoney]

Noted, Mike - good shout!

[@karenhall5932]

Fantastic video, thank you

[@mikemer79]

Nice honest guy,not a fake guru and driver a toyota

[@tomwebster8299]

Great video and shared with a few friends who I felt might benefit from your words of wisdom. I have to say I’ve gone more active over the years and the more I’ve gotten into investing, my gains have gone up as a result. Interesting to see your break down, it’s simplicity and I hope things continue to do well, and you bring that ‘retirement’ age down, if you want to that is 💪.

[@123CloudStrife]

Yes.

[@ultraloon]

Yes

[@chrisbarlow5968]

yes

[@jamescottam1138]

Very simple stuff. Sound like a decent bloke too, glad the algorithm sent you my way.

[@MeaningfulMoney]

Me too, James - thank you 🙏🏻

[@bb-lp1ym]

brilliant advice

[@rusty911s2]

Excellent and well presented advice, thank you very much.

[@MeaningfulMoney]

Thank you! 🙏🏻👍🏻

[@catseybod]

Nicely done, Sir, as ever. Great to see someone in the biz saying it like it is (i.e. Simple is Best) after the bad old days of over mystification to justify their fees.

[@izzatalmalki669]

You are my favorite finance youtuber!

[@MeaningfulMoney]

Awww. And you’re my favourite of today’s commenters! 😍

[@moralesdirect]

Thanks! I just discovered you and I subscribed after one video. Your candor and transparency come across well and I relate to your one income, married at 20ish lifestyle. I live in Texas, 35 yrs married, high income earner with not a lot of net worth (home, 401k). Thank you again for inspiring me to focus this year on my financial health and planning.

[@MeaningfulMoney]

Thank you!🙏🏻

[@JohnnyRehm]

First time here. Thank you for content.

[@TobyNewbatt]

Great video! So many great nuggets here!

[@MeaningfulMoney]

Thanks Toby!

[@GeoffMaxwell]

super video . enjoyed the imformation

[@MeaningfulMoney]

Cheers, Geoff

[@garphill2162]

After October/November pulled out of gilts/Bonds. I am 60% Dividend core and 40% growth using a mini Buffet style on companies. Presently 6 months on made up my losses from the Bonds/gilts. Up 15% and hoping to push towards the 30% mark by next year. Ben Graham/Warren Buffet/ Peter Lynch mantra. Research your company follow the simple rules and be patient. I am not a Financial adviser just a person who has researched a lot.

[@mariavega4898]

Im pretty much in the same direction. And im glad to know im in the right path. I dont have a business but i work full time as a nurse. And with all of this covid situation, overtime shifts are paid higher in nhs so im utilising my overtime money to 1. Overpay mortgage 2. Pay monthly S&P 500 3. Put some small monthly cash in my 4 individual stocks and btc and eth or just whenever market is down-- not compulsory tho. And lastly, to send some cash for my family back in my country... all of which are taken from my overtime shifts pay... then utilise my regular monthly wage to sort the bills and put some emergency funds and to save for a deposit for a btl mortgage. Planning to retire early at age 45 y/0 and enjoy the remaining of my life...

[@scranspanners]

Yes! I’m a great believer in the Emergency Fund

[@BeCleverWithYourCash]

Really interesting, thanks Pete

[@catherine13982]

Yes!

[@samiirmal5586]

Amazing video. Great person. Wish you every success 👍👍👍

[@markiemucka]

Yes, I fully understand the message...simple and boring gets the job done. Reminds me of what Lars Kroijer (Investing Demystified) would preach. In terms on paying off mortgage versus investing in shares ISA, that's an intriguing one. For me, I've opted to pay a low mortgage monthly payment and take a relative risk on Shares ISA (simple global tracker), hoping for better returns versus mortgage pay off although latter are guaranteed returns...hence interesting scenario...we'll see if it pays off :-).

[@MeaningfulMoney]

I’ve interviewed Lars a couple of times - a great bloke.

[@adamharrison8049]

Excellent channel -

[@superpantman]

There are a lot of people who can tell you where to put your money, often in expert courses. Nothing will beat real world experience.

[@h3kufc]

I use premium bonds as my emergency fund, better that sitting in the bank.

[@boyasaka]

Same here 15k there and can get it out within a week if need be

[@dorisbrown7347]

Great content

[@anthonyjanes9973]

another great video, thanks

[@Finance-Thinking]

great advice

[@patrickdaltonharrison2797]

Such good advice

[@davidcapurro2594]

Great video. Thank you

[@MeaningfulMoney]

Thank you: I appreciate it!

[@nortonr]

Yes 👍

[@timstrongman37]

Yes! Great video Pete!

[@martinjarvis8312]

Very good video Pete. I’ve always been an advocate of paying ones mortgage off right from the day I got my first one in 1994. I payed it off years ago since getting a divorce I mange to save thousands£££££ I started investing again this year in vanguard at the moment I put 32 grand in this month twenty of that in. An isa. I have three pensions although not paying any in at the money I’m 59 now so not sure it’s worth it.

[@boydsargeant7496]

Yes Pete!

[@chrismajor69]

Warren Buffet recommends low cost index funds for the average investor , he knows a thing or two 👍

[@boyasaka]

Yup I've got ETFs Vanguard s and p 500 And a global etf

[@chrisf1600]

Great advice. One suggestion I'd make is to have a look at stock market valuations around the world when you're choosing your core fund(s). US stocks have had a great decade, but they are now very expensive by historical standards and returns over the long term are likely to be lower than we have become used to. Personally I have a tilt towards cheaper markets like the UK, since history suggests they are likely to catch up ("mean revert") eventually. Of course, nothing in investing is certain and US stocks may continue to do fantastically for another decade ! That's part of the fun I suppose :)

[@TbirdThunderstruck]

Fair point.. You are correct most markets are cheaper on most metrics than the US, PE ratios, Market cap / GDP, etc. UK is cheap relative to US. Some factors might warrant higher valuations.. The US does have some larger Tech giants (FAANGs) and a higher proportion of companies that are market leaders. The US dollar is also the global reserve currency which could be beneficial too.

[@maviswheeler8318]

thanks good advice, made me feel good as it's what I've done

[@MeaningfulMoney]

Always good to have things confirmed, Mavis! Thanks for watching…

[@velbels]

Aygo is an awesome car ours is 13 year old and still going strong 😊

[@MrAvant123]

Good talk. I get so sick of the liars or idiots on the AIM share bulletin boards claiming to have 100's of K£ in dodgy stocks. Though I wouldnt be happy to have so much tied into a small business in this way as much bad stuff can happen to these.

[@mwscuba]

quick question why pay of the mortgage (as rates are low ) when you could get better returns on the money ? genuinely interested as im using ISA to save into to off mine

[@ryangowan814]

Hi Pete, loved your podcasts for so long now. I was thinking about becoming a financial planner myself, any tips for courses and getting started on this track (currently in the accounting field)? Keep up producing quality content!

[@MeaningfulMoney]

Hey Ryan - it’s a noble calling! Start here: kzbin.info/www/bejne/m4ircmOYetd_hqM and then come back to me with any questions

[@davelee212]

I'm just in the process of consolidating 5 old workplace pensions and an old SIPP into a new SIPP, invested in a single global index tracker. So I now just have my current workplace pension and a very simply invested SIPP, which is going to be much easier to keep a track of. Listening to your back catalogue of podcasts and KZbin videos was a great help in getting my head around it all. Thanks Pete!

[@MeaningfulMoney]

Great stuff, Dave! Well done for taking action!

[@ziggytrick]

Pete, mate, you're simply the best, keeping it real.

[@MeaningfulMoney]

Very kind - thank you!

[@bc7522]

Just discovered your channel top quality stuff mate all the best

[@MeaningfulMoney]

Thank you Bc - great to have you here!

[@TheMoneyBunker]

Great “advice” Pete, a true pro - keep smashing the vids!

[@MeaningfulMoney]

Loving the quotes there - “advice” indeed 😂

[@robi4514]

Great video Pete, now a subscriber to this and the podcasts. One question - by investing your pension in only one fund, are you not at risk of exceeding the FSA compensation thingy, which is currently limited to £80k (per provider?)?

[@MeaningfulMoney]

There’s a lot to unpack here, Rob. The FSCS compensation limit is £85k per person, per provider, but where there are funds held on platforms it really does depend on who it is that goes bust! I’m happy enough to rest on the very strict rules that require platforms to separate their money from their clients’ money and if I’m doing my job right, I’ll have much more than £85k to worry about!

[@nicobass1966]

YES

[@adamgraney5817]

Great video Pete, as someone just starting out I recently finished your book and good to see a lot of the same simple plans in place

[@MeaningfulMoney]

Thanks for buying the book, Adam

[@duchinsmickle]

Hey I am 16 years old and want to be a financial advisor when I finish my bachelors for finance. I have been investing for about a year now and have a fidelity youth account and have mutual funds that I consistently put money into with every pay check I make. I am waiting to turn 18 because I want to get my ROTH IRA and start my retirement fund asap. My plan is to live as cheap as possible and pay my college off in cash but since I am getting half of it for free it shouldn’t be too expensive not including my scholarships. With the excess budget from my career job I plan on saving up to start a business of some kind. We will see where I end up, I got lucky enough to learn about all this so that I will have a ton when I retire. Thank you for videos like this I think I will have a pretty good life because of people like you.