Can You Win at Investing If You Study? Why a 50-Something Taxi Driver Who Hated Studying Still Learns Today
To start with the conclusion, there is no guarantee that you will win at investing just because you study.
Even so, I believe that if you are going to invest, you should study.
This is not to learn a “guaranteed way to win,” but rather to protect your own money and think for yourself.
Key points of this article
・Even if you study investing, it does not mean you will always win
・Even so, having knowledge can reduce the number of times you “put money in without understanding”
・Whether it is driving a taxi or investing, thinking and researching changes what you see
・By actually learning about crypto assets, I realized the importance of “protecting” before “increasing”
I hated schoolwork.
Honestly, my grades weren’t good either.
Yet, as an adult, I have taken the initiative to research things like golf, guitar, stocks, how to earn money as a taxi driver, and now even crypto assets and DeFi.
Why is that?
Looking back on my life so far, I have begun to see the “meaning of studying investing” a little more clearly.
Chapter 1: Can you win at investing if you study? Conclusion: “There is no guarantee of winning”
“Can you win at investing if you study?”
Isn’t that a question you think about at least once when you start stocks or investing?
My answer is, studying does not mean you will always win.
No matter how much you research, the market can sometimes move in the opposite direction of your predictions.
Even experienced people lose money.
If there were someone who could predict future stock prices or the price of Bitcoin with 100% accuracy, no one would have any trouble.
Then why study?
In my case, rather than looking for a “guaranteed way to win,” it is to avoid putting in my precious money without understanding what I am doing.
Since it is my own money, I want to at least know this much.
What am I spending my money on?
Why does it generate profit?
Conversely, what would cause me to lose money?
“Because an expert said so”
“Because everyone else is doing it”
“Because it seems like it might make money for some reason”
It is still scary to invest money based on those reasons alone.
Even just increasing your knowledge a little bit
“I don’t understand this yet”
“Isn’t this story a bit strange?”
“Can I handle this level of risk?”
provides material to think about.
Rather than to win, it’s to avoid investing money without understanding it.
That is the mindset I have when I study investing now.
Chapter 2: How I, who ‘hated studying,’ started researching on my own in my 50s
I have never liked schoolwork since I was young.
I couldn’t get motivated even when told to ‘study.’
I only memorized things because I had to for tests.
So for a long time, I thought I was a person who hated studying.
However, looking back as an adult, that doesn’t seem to be the case.
I hated schoolwork. But if it was something I liked, I would look it up.
When I started playing golf, I looked things up on my own because I wanted to get even a little better.
It was the same with the guitar.
If there was a song I wanted to play, I would practice it, and I would want to know how to play it well.
When I became interested in stocks, I bought books and read them.
And it was the same with my taxi job.
I work on a commission basis.
If I’m going to do it anyway, I want to be able to earn as much as I can.
So, I joined content that teaches how to earn money as a taxi driver and watched YouTube, studying in my own way.
It is the same with crypto assets this time.
Since I am using my own money, it is scary to do it without knowing anything.
Whenever I came across a term I didn’t understand, I started looking it up each time.
It’s not like anyone told me to ‘study’.
That’s when I realized.
Maybe I didn’t hate studying itself, but rather hated being forced to study things I wasn’t interested in.
You don’t have to force yourself to eat green peppers you hate
Of course, I am not the type who can do everything stoically.
I think that’s fine, too.
The important thing is whether or not it’s fun to do.
You don’t have to keep forcing yourself to eat green peppers you hate.
If there is a carrot you like, you should just eat it.
You research it because you like it.
When you understand a little, it becomes interesting.
When it becomes interesting, you want to try a little more.
Perhaps that is what studying is supposed to be like.
Chapter 3: Taxis and Investing Are Similar. Results Differ Even Under the Same Conditions
When working as a taxi driver, there is a surprisingly large difference in sales.
Same company, same fares.
The streets of Tokyo we drive on are the same, too.
Yet, those who earn, earn.
What could be the difference?
Watching while I work, the people who earn the most are the ones who think the most.
The more a driver earns, the more they innovate in their own way
“Where are people likely to gather today?”
“Where should I head at this time?”
“Are there any events?”
“Are the trains delayed?”
They don’t just rely on experience; they gather information and analyze it in their own way.
And, surprisingly, those people are quite stoic.
I can’t be that stoic (laughs).
However, when I watch them, it might not feel like they are making an effort.
They might just enjoy thinking about how to increase their sales, or enjoy seeing today’s numbers go up compared to yesterday’s like a game.
Therefore, I don’t mean to say that people who can’t earn money aren’t trying hard enough.
This is just something I have felt while working in the field, but
you think because you like it. You innovate because you think. As you continue to do that, a difference emerges.
I think there is an aspect of that as well.
Isn’t it the same with investing?
You can buy the same stocks.
You can look at the same charts.
Nowadays, many people can access similar information using the internet.
Even so, some people invest money based only on what they hear from others, while others decide only after doing their own research.
Of course, those who research don’t always make a profit.
But if you are going to enter the same game, you should at least know the rules.
To me, having worked as a taxi driver, that seems like the natural thing to do.
Chapter 4: Why do we think we should just leave it to the experts when it comes to investing?
If it’s golf, you practice because you want to get better.
If it’s guitar, you learn the chords.
If it’s taxi driving, you learn the city and the movement of people.
However, when it comes to money, I feel like things are a bit different.
“It’s fine if I just leave it in the bank”
Because the person at the brokerage firm said so.
Because an expert in investing recommended it.
Perhaps we tend to have a sense of wanting to leave things to someone who knows more when it comes to money.
Of course, there is nothing wrong with being taught by others.
I watch YouTube too.
I read books as well.
I also listen to what experts have to say.
However, being taught and blindly delegating are two different things.
Don’t stop at ‘They are an expert, so it must be fine’
In the world of investing, there are people called experts, as well as study groups and communities.
That in itself is not a bad thing.
However, just because someone has the title of expert does not mean that what they say is correct.
The Financial Services Agency is also calling for caution regarding cases where people are lured into investment groups via social media and encouraged to invest by individuals referred to as teachers or instructors.
If possible, I want to increase my money without much effort.
I have that feeling too.
If the money is going to grow anyway, it is better to do it easily than to struggle.
But perhaps it is precisely because we have that feeling that we sometimes want to believe in convenient stories.
Come to think of it, even people who gamble study if they want to win, right?
In horse racing, some people even research the horses’ past performance, the jockeys, and the track conditions.
Of course, there is still a part that is left to luck in the end.
To take it to an extreme, even scammers must be studying ‘how to make people trust them’ (laughs).
If the people doing the deceiving are thinking that much, there is no way the people putting up the money should know nothing.
‘Where is this profit coming from?’
‘What happens if it moves in the opposite direction?’
‘Why would someone tell me about such a good deal?’
I think that just having one such question makes a difference.
Chapter 5: You Wouldn’t Step Up to the Batter’s Box Without Knowing the Rules of Baseball
When I think about investing, I often compare it to baseball.
Would someone who knows nothing about the rules of baseball suddenly step up to the batter’s box?
What is a strike?
How many outs until the side is retired?
If you don’t even know that, you can’t even have a game.
I think investing is the same.
That said, I don’t mean to say you shouldn’t start until you understand everything.
I myself didn’t start with crypto assets after understanding everything.
Rather, it was precisely because I actually tried it that I realized what I ‘didn’t understand’.
When I tried using DeFi, questions came up one after another
It was the same with DeFi and yield farming.
*DeFi (Decentralized Finance) is a general term for systems that use blockchain mechanisms to utilize transactions and financial services without going through a central administrator like a bank.
*Yield farming is a method of operation where you earn revenue such as fees by depositing crypto assets or providing liquidity. There are also risks such as price fluctuations.
At first, I looked at the yield numbers and
“I can get this much?”
I thought.
But as I actually started using it, questions kept coming up one after another.
Why are fees paid out?
Who is paying those fees?
If the price of crypto assets moves, what happens to my assets?
How do I manage a wallet?
What happens if I lose my seed phrase?
*A seed phrase is a combination of important words used to restore a crypto asset wallet. If it becomes known to a third party or if you lose it yourself, it can lead to the loss of your assets.
Every time I look something up, another unknown term pops up.
“Is there still more?”
I sometimes think (laughs).
But I think that’s fine.
There are things you learn by actually doing them.
Not knowing something is different from not trying to know.
I believe that is what’s important.
Chapter 6: What I Realized After Studying Crypto Assets. Before “Growing” Them, There Is “Protecting” Them
Since I started using crypto assets and DeFi, I have looked up things I didn’t understand each time.
However, I started to feel that I wanted to learn from the basics, rather than just looking things up piecemeal on the internet or YouTube.
So, I took a course from the Crypto Asset Education Association, and I have now completed up to Level 2.
There is one thing here that left an impression on me.
That is,
“Protect your own assets yourself.”
That is the way of thinking.
When it comes to investing, I only thought about “increasing it.”
When you start investing, the things you inevitably worry about are:
“How much will it grow?”
“What is the percentage yield?”
“How much profit did I make?”
These are the topics.
I personally deal with crypto assets and DeFi, so I am concerned about yields and investment performance.
However, after learning about protecting assets in the Level 2 course, I thought about it again.
Even if you only think about increasing your assets, it is meaningless if you cannot protect them.
With crypto assets, there are situations where you have to manage your own wallet.
How to store your seed phrase.
Not opening suspicious links.
Not giving important information to unknown parties.
Confirming what you are approving.
It is a little different from the feeling of depositing money in a bank.
There is no guarantee that someone will protect everything for you.
Therefore,
protect your own assets yourself.
This phrase has started to feel heavier than it used to.
I don’t think this is just about crypto assets.
And I suspect this way of thinking isn’t limited to crypto assets.
“Because the teacher said so”
“Because I’m leaving it to an expert”
“Because everyone else is doing it”
Instead of just feeling secure because of these things, try looking into it yourself a little.
If you don’t understand, ask.
If you aren’t convinced, don’t put your money in right away.
When it came to studying for investment, I used to have the image that it meant learning “how to win.”
But once I actually started learning, I realized it wasn’t just about that.
Before learning how to increase your money, first learn how to protect it.
The reason why I, who hated schoolwork, am studying money and crypto assets in my 50s might actually lie right here.
Summary | Studying for investment isn’t about having someone else make you win
“Can you win at investing if you study?”
The answer I gave at the beginning of this article remains unchanged until the end.
Even if you study, it doesn’t mean you will definitely win.
In the market, there are things you simply cannot control.
No matter how much you study, there will be times when you lose money.
However, when I look back on my life, I notice something interesting.
I hated studying in school.
Yet, when I started playing golf, I researched how to get better.
I practiced the guitar, too.
When I started trading stocks, I bought books.
As a taxi driver on a commission basis, I watched YouTube and other content because I wanted to earn even a little more.
And now, I am learning about crypto assets.
In the end, perhaps we naturally want to know about things we are interested in or want to get better at, without anyone telling us to.
Isn’t investing the same way?
Moreover, you are using your own precious money.
You don’t need to become an expert.
I also don’t think you have to understand everything before you can start.
Even so,
what are you putting your money into?
why does it generate profit?
what would cause you to lose money?
And,
how can you protect your assets?
I want to know at least that much in my own way.
It is not so that someone else can make me win.
It is so that I can ultimately decide for myself whether to do something or not regarding my own money.
Studying for investment might not be about searching for a ‘winning strategy to win,’ but rather about how to live with your own money.
There is no need to force yourself to eat green peppers if you hate them.
I am now interested in the carrot that is crypto assets.
So, I will take another bite (laughs).
*This article summarizes my own experiences and learning regarding investment and crypto assets. Investment and crypto assets carry risks such as price fluctuations and the loss of principal. When actually investing, please make your own decisions after confirming the mechanisms and risks.
## Read More | Thinking a Little More About Investment and Money
In this article, I reflected on my own experience to consider the question, ‘Can you win at investing if you study?’
Studying does not guarantee that you will win.
Even so, I believe there is a difference between putting money in without knowing anything and choosing to do so after understanding the mechanisms and risks.
▶ What is the difference between investing and gambling?
‘If money goes up and down in both investing and gambling, aren’t they the same?’
This is an article where I thought about the difference between investing and gambling based on that question.
▶ Is cryptocurrency scary? My perspective changed once I understood the mechanism
I myself used to have an image of cryptocurrency as ‘suspicious’ and ‘scary’.
I wrote about what I felt as I actually researched it, having been someone who was scared because I didn’t know.