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ETFs · Index funds · Workplace funds · Stocks · Mana Credit · Compare halal products ↗ · Terms · PrivacyThe direct debit setup, payday investing strategy, what to do if you miss a month, and why automation is the most underrated investing habit.
Every month where you have to actively decide to invest is a month where life can get in the way. The boiler breaks. The wedding season hits. You'll invest next month. Then next month becomes never.
Automation removes the decision entirely. You set it up once. After that, it just happens.
That's it. Trading 212 will automatically buy ISWD units on that date every month, using the cash in your ISA.
Set your recurring investment for the day after your salary lands. Not the end of the month. Not the 15th. The day after payday.
Why? Because the money moves before you've spent it. You're investing from income, not from what's left over. Most people try to invest what's left after spending. There's almost always nothing left. Pay yourself first, meaning your future self, before anything else.
Set up a bank standing order too: transfer your investing allocation to your Trading 212 ISA the day your salary arrives. The app then automatically buys on the scheduled date.
Nothing. Resume next month. Don't try to "catch up" by doubling your investment. Don't stress. One missed month over a 20-year investing career is completely irrelevant.
The only thing that matters is staying in the game.
When investing is automated, you stop obsessing over market timing. You stop asking "should I wait for the market to drop before buying?" Because you're buying regardless. Every month. Whatever the price.
This turns out to be optimal investing behaviour. You automatically buy more units when the price is low, and fewer when it's high. Without thinking about it. That's exactly what the next article covers: it's called DCA.
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