How My Search for Freedom Led Me to Investing

For as long as I can remember, I’ve craved one thing: financial independence.
Just the freedom to earn, decide, build — and live life on my own terms.
That desire shaped me early.
I wasn’t the student with a fixed plan or a clear answer when someone asked, “What do you want
to become?”
What I did know — even back then — was that I wanted freedom.
Freedom to think differently, to try things, to fail, to grow.
That mindset led me to explore unconventional paths early in life and planted a quiet but strong
desire:
To build something that was mine.

Chasing Non-Traditional Paths

During my teenage years, poker entered my life — not as a game, but as a challenge.
I started playing around 16, and throughout college it became a regular part of my routine.

Poker taught me lessons long before investing did:

• How emotions destroy good decisions
• How discipline matters more than excitement
• How risk management defines survival
• How conviction means nothing without consistency

And like many early poker players, I made money — and lost it. Built bankrolls — and blew
them up. Repeated the cycle more times than I’d like to admit.
But looking back, I’m grateful for those experiences.
They taught me resilience, emotional control, and patience — lessons I didn’t understand then,
but rely on today.

Trying Jobs — But Never Feeling Connected

I tried conventional work too.
I worked in a call center after school.
I worked part-time as a delivery driver and pizza maker during my post-graduation in
Melbourne.
But no matter where I worked, one feeling was constant:

A salary never felt like the path I wanted.

I didn’t want comfort — I wanted growth, challenge, and autonomy.

The Moment Everything Shifted

Just before returning to India, I watched a documentary:

"Becoming Warren Buffett."

That film changed everything.
For the first time, investing felt logical, structured, human — not chaotic.
Buffett made me believe that success in markets had nothing to do with IQ or shortcuts. It was
about discipline, temperament, and long-term thinking.

His teachings sparked something in me:

• I started reading — something I never enjoyed before.
• I studied every recommended book.
• I studied all his shareholder letters.
• I read annual reports not as documents, but as stories of businesses.

That curiosity turned into passion — and eventually, conviction.

Applying the Learning

When I moved back to India and joined my family business, I also began actively managing our
family investment portfolio — something that wasn’t structured or guided before.
My time was split between responsibilities and self-learning.
Fortunately, there was a family portfolio that wasn’t actively managed.
That became my training ground.

In 2018, I began managing it — slowly, thoughtfully, study first, action later.
The early years were quiet. No big gains. No overnight success.
But there was learning.
Consistent reading.
Understanding businesses, not just stock prices.
And then something interesting happened.
By 2020, the patience and research began reflecting in performance.
Conviction turned into results — not because I predicted markets, but because I understood what
I owned and why I owned it.

What This Journey Taught Me

Investing didn’t just change my financial life — it changed my mindset, my habits, and my
identity.

It taught me:

• Success compounds — just like capital.
• Patience is a competitive advantage.
• Avoiding mistakes is more important than chasing opportunities.
• Investing in yourself is the highest-return asset class.

Most importantly:

There is a method to the madness — and anyone with discipline, curiosity, and emotional
balance can succeed.

Why I Help Others Invest Now

Today, investing is no longer just something I do — it’s something I share.
Because I know what it feels like to be confused.
To search for direction.
To want freedom, not just returns.
My goal as an advisor isn’t to give stock tips.
It’s to help people build a mindset — the kind that leads to clarity, patience, and long-term
wealth creation.

If you’ve made it this far, thank you.
This is the first chapter — not just of my blog, but of the philosophy I’ll unfold in the coming
posts.
Until then —
Invest with intention.
Not impulse.

• Poojan Patel