Advice to your 25-year old self?

Investing / Portfolios
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Hi dear wise Mustachians,

I am seeking wisdom as I am new to this fascinating world of acronyms of FI and ETFs.

About me: 25 year old woman working in tech, based in Ireland. I have 30K to invest, plus 15K in company stocks (tech). Additionally, 7% of my salary goes to a pension fund (that I won’t be able to access until retirement, but my employer matches the contribution so it’s a nice, tax-free 2x). I seek simplicity and intend to use ETFs as a long-term investment strategy.

My questions:
I’m afraid of having a diversification problem and over-indexing in tech stocks if I buy a standard all world ETF (VT/VTI) - is this a legitimate thought? Which alternative ETFs would you recommend that exclude tech?

I opened an account with DEGIRO to find out that several of the US ETFs are not available anymore, including VT. Given the current selection, which ETF would you recommend?

Alternatively, would it be worth it to open an account with another broker (thinking of IB) given my current volume? If so, which ETFs would you recommend?

Do I need to include bonds given that I already invest 7% of my salary in a non-volatile pension fund?

Is there any other advice that you would like to give to your 25 year old self?

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Welcome to the forum, and good on you for thinking along these lines at your age!

If this is the case, why are you looking at Degiro and not IB?

3

You are overindexing tech stocks because of your company stock package which is why I would consider selling those instead of trying to compensate on the open market :wink:

Of course you have great insider know how on how your company is doing so you might hold them. Or you won’t be able to sell for a while.

Just keep in mind you have an overexposure to your companies well being due to your employment status as well as your investment

I would also ditch Degiro and go with IB

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I started to work in 2006, I was 23 at the time. I remember a colleague giving me good advice and telling me to get interested in the stock market.
Then 2008 came around the corner, I was just 25 then. I kinda I laughed at my older colleagues that were quite panicked at this point. It also scared me away from investing in the stock market for quite a long time.

I wanted to save money to buy some real estate… But then I moved out of CH and never invested anything substantial until around 2016, about 10 years later.

Advice to my 25 self: inaction and fear will cost you.

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5

Lots of advices. On financial side: earn, save and invest. On the career side: learn more and practice marketable skills (like team leadership). On the life side: eat healthy, do sports, don’t stress (or at least relax and meditate), don’t overblow your expectations, try new things and
explore, focus on important things: well being of yourself, your family and your friends; finally, find happiness in simple pleasures of life.

PS. Work on your habits and your relationships. Both self-improvement and quality of friendships and love tend to compound over time, if you regularly invest in them.

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