A Guidebook For Investors To Stay Afloat And Survive The Crisis

While a lot has been spoken and discussed about the ideal measures one should take in these times of crisis, we still need to address the elephant in the room. What if you don’t have the resources and flexibility, to put these steps in place? In the absence of having a contingency fund or a recent job loss or pay-cut, how do to meet your pending EMIs without any source of income? What should you do if you don’t have any or adequate life or health insurance and no means to invest in them currently?

COVID 19 has thrown up several questions, exposing our vulnerabilities. There are several questions and few answers. With several lingering questions and few answers, this article hopes to serve as a guidebook for investors, to tide through this pandemic, with caution and wisdom.

1. Stay Calm

While the overall environment and sentiment is sombre, constant worrying about the current situation, will only make matters worse. This is the time for you to keep your emotions in check and your mind open to the opportunities that may come your way. Update your skills and your resume, circulating the same amongst peers, ex-employers etc, to explore new avenues to enhance your career. It is also a time to curb your expenses and re-negotiate your debts and loans.

If full-time job opportunities seem bleak, consider taking up part-time opportunities to manage day- to-day costs. Push discretionary expenses to the backburner and take advantage of the loan moratorium offered by the Reserve Bank of India and other measures.

2. Stay Healthy

A medical contingency amid job loss and lack of health insurance, is a double whammy that can leave a significant dent in finances. Also, as most private and government hospitals are chock-a- block with COVID-19 patients, a health crisis now could drain you emotionally as well.

Therefore, it is imperative for you to focus on your health and encourage your family to do the same. Staying healthy, especially in times like this, can help alleviate stress and also help prevent any medical exigencies that could deplete your wallet.

3. Stay Invested

With stock markets tumbling and fundamentally-sound stocks going for a toss, staying invested can be nerve-racking. However, panicking and exiting your current investments now, could jeopardise your financial goals and make miss the market rally when the bull begins its run.

In case you are facing liquidity issues, instead of exiting, find out if you can pause your investments and restart once the dust settles. For instance, SIPs (systematic investment plans) in mutual funds offer the pause facility where you can stop your SIPs for a brief period. Utilise this to your advantage and stay invested.

In Conclusion

As India slowly works its way to recovery post COVID, normalcy is still a long way off. With reports suggesting a contraction of the economy, patience coupled with fiscal discipline, can help you protect yourself and your wealth wisely.