Ganesh Chaturthi: 6 Investing Lessons From Lord Ganesha

It’s that time of the year again. Most Indian households swing into action on the auspicious occasion of Ganesh Chaturthi to spruce up their finances and welcome the lord, who removes all obstacles. 

Investment experts say Ganesh Chaturthi is a good time to make a start and straighten up your investment decisions. As we pray to Lord Ganapati for his blessings and protection, here are six investment lessons from the lord himself.

Invest with intelligence and wisdom: Lord Ganesha’s head represents wisdom and intelligence. “When you are making your investment decisions, you must try to make use of your wisdom and intelligence, and weigh all asset classes, before investing your hard-earned money. Also, try to think ‘out-of-the-box’ when you make such decisions,” says Hemant Beniwal, a certified financial planner and director at Ark Primary Advisors, a financial planning firm. 

Develop good listening skills: Lord Ganesha, who is also known as Lambakarna, due to his big ears, is a patient listener. Similarly, in order to make good investing plans, you must try to develop your listening skills. A good listener would listen carefully and clearly to sound investment advices. “You must consider your ear as a funnel to filter out unnecessary information and take in relevant ones. You must keep your ears wide open for any relevant information related to investments from across the world,” says AK Narayan, CEO and founder of AK Narayan Associates, a Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi)-registered financial advisor. 

Have great endurance: Lord Ganesha’s large belly represents great power of endurance. It teaches you to make your investments, big or small, according to your risk appetite and financial situation, among others. It is always advisable to invest systematically and diligently. You could always start your investments with smaller ones, and increase it gradually, depending on your financial capacity. Also, investing a lump sum amount in short-term funds could help you to build an emergency fund. 

Attention to details: Lord Ganesha is also called Chinteshwara, due to his small yet sharp eyes. This is the ability to focus or concentrate on a task at hand without any distractions. His eyes also look beyond what we see and pays attention to every detail. These traits are important for any kind of investor, i.e., being able to focus or to have a specific vision before making any investment. As an investor, you must try to focus on your individual goal-based investment plan. This would help you to carefully build a well-diversified strategic portfolio based on your asset allocation that could beat inflation and help you to achieve your financial goals. 

Adaptability and flexibility: Due to Lord Ganesha’s strong yet curved trunk, he is also called Vakratunda, which basically means adaptability and flexibility. As an investor, you must evaluate your investment portfolio on a regular basis to see if its performance is helping you in your journey of wealth creation. You must be aware of new investments and be open to efficiently adjust your portfolio. You must also keep track of any significant news that could impact your financial plan. 

Practicing humility: The tiny mouse as Lord Ganesha’s vahana or vehicle, represents humility and simplicity. It stands for a wise fact of life: Simple Living and High Thinking. Once you learn to stay humble and grounded, and living within your means, you would keep your ego in check, and learn to save more than you spend. This would help you to avoid impulsive purchases, such as on credit card offers. It would stop you from seeking instant gratification, too. You must let go of bad spending habits, fix a budget, and save and invest wisely.