Investing Is Boring - That’s Why It Works
It took me 12 years to reach $100,000 in investments.
And no, I didn’t buy crypto early, flip houses, or start a dropshipping empire. I just stuck to the plan: slow, boring, consistent investing. For most people with normal jobs, normal salaries, and normal responsibilities, building wealth takes time. It’s not glamorous. It’s not fast. And there are no real shortcuts.
Ignore the fake financial gurus. Most of them are just expert marketers selling overpriced, underwhelming advice you can find for free online. To their credit, they’re charismatic, but that’s where the value ends.
Why It Takes So Long
I started investing, more accurately, saving for retirement, at 19 during my second co-op job. I was surrounded by well-paid, full-time engineers in their 40s and 50s. They had stable jobs and affordable mortgages (back when that was a thing), but many of them still felt financially stuck.
The common thread? Lifestyle creep. They had expensive cars, motorcycles, oversized homes - all of it. Nearly every one of them warned me: start early and avoid the trap. So I did. I opened a retirement account and scraped together $25 a month. That was all I could afford, but it was something.
Each co-op term, I bumped up the amount. After graduation, I got more aggressive. Still - 12 years. Why so long? Because early adulthood is full of major life expenses:
- School tuition: $55,000 out of pocket, plus $20,000 borrowed (not counting living expenses for 6 years)
- Wedding: $8,000 - local venue, catered, low-key
- Home downpayment: $35,000 for a small condo
- Emergency savings: $20,000 for 6 months of expenses
That’s about $158,000 in major savings before even counting the cost of living in downtown Toronto. So yeah - investing early was hard, but I stuck to it.
Investing in Bursts
Even though I automated my monthly contributions, most of the real progress came in spurts - tax returns, work bonuses, a few months without unexpected expenses. I never blew those windfalls. I reinvested dividends and dropped lump sums into my portfolio whenever I could.
Discipline beats hype.
Small Steps Become a Sprint
The beginning was painfully slow. My account grew by a few bucks a month, then a few hundred. For a while, it felt like it wasn’t working. But I didn’t stop. Eventually, returns became noticeable. Then they grew. And during good market runs, I started seeing a couple thousand in monthly gains. Now, those numbers approach, and in some cases, exceed five figures per month (of course on a really good month).
Final Thought
The start feels pointless. It’s not. Stay consistent. Stay boring. That’s where the magic is.
