Yes, the age old question. How or where do i actually start investing? I'm 24, just started the work life. Realized compound interests need to start ASAP?

The % you could invest depends clearly on your total pay minus regular expenses.

it could help to put on pay day away a specified percentage of the pay (you can experiment a while), for the rest calculate a realistic budget (you could start with a 3 - 6 month

information collection period to know better how much you spend on average),

and then spend your expenses wisely and do never go into debt.

You can start by reading up some books on personal finance and investing. A good place to start investing is through the regular savings plan and robo advisor.

Congratulation on realizing the power of compound interest. Do not rush to invest.

1. Start by understanding yourself and your situation

• what you have? capital, insurance, savings, salary, CPF

• what is your monthly spending? debt, expenses,etc

• your risk profile

• your investment goal: e.g your marriage, your housing etc

I would like to correct you that both saving and investing are a mean to your goal

• For more details, read Pang Zhe Liang post

After knowing yourself, where to get started?

It is okay to start small. The most important thing is investing for a long time so that your capital will be compounded. The key factor is time

2. Getting started

Diversified to spread your risk across all assets class, countries and sectors/markets

Roboadvisors are a great way to start investing, with low capital and be diversified. Dollar cost average your roboadvisors and let the robo runs itself

At the meantime, learn more about investment, choosing the right assets class to meet your goals.

Clear up the myth of JUST BUYING AS MANY STOCKS AS I CAN FOR DIVIDENDS: you are giving yourself the fastest way to hell. Read about the hyflux, m1 and starhubs saga. Investment is not as easy as it seems. But it can be easy when you have the right technique and knowledge. E.g Do you just eat anything that is in front of you?

In conclusion, realising the wonder of compound interest / the need to invest is just the first but important step. Your next hurdle is doing it right. Haste makes waste. I believe this phrase resonates with most seasonal investors.

Cheers

PS: My main goal is to invest in dividend stocks for the long run as 'compound interest' but I'm not really sure how to. Very new to this.​​​