Five finfluencers, five different answers. How do people stop drowning in investing content and actually act?

Too much information doesn't automatically lead to better action; the more practical approach is to anchor every decision to a written goal and a trusted sounding board, so new content gets filtered rather than followed.

Fifteen or 20yr ago, investment conversations were limited. There are only so many hours in a day, and a chat with an advisor or a knowledgeable colleague had a good chance of leading to a clear action. Today, the volume of podcasts and reels is frankly frightening.

If you watch five videos and each says something different, by the end of the fifth you won't know whether to invest, withdraw, or rebalance. The smart office colleague who once guided people has largely been replaced by influencers and so-called pundits. The trouble is that they don't know your goals, your income, or your risk appetite.

Data suggests DIY investors often hold their portfolios for much shorter periods than people who work with an advisor. A big reason is the absence of a goal. Someone sees a new fund or a reel, googles it, and puts money in.

Without a purpose attached, it's just as easy to pull the money out when the next video comes along. Your switching every year or so fits this pattern. And to be fair, that early experience of investing has value, as it is how most of us learn.

To filter the noise, first write down what each part of your Rs 18L is for, whether it is retirement, a house, children, or something else. Second, for each piece of content ask one question: does this change my goal or my timeline? If not, it is entertainment, not instruction.

Third, consider a once-a-year review rather than reacting to each video. We spend a lot of time looking for a life partner, but a good financial partner can be almost as important. When I started investing I didn't have one and made plenty of mistakes.

You do get smarter from your own mistakes, but a good partner lets you learn from other people's experience instead. A good partner tends to make you more disciplined and gives your investing a purpose. They also challenge your decisions, which makes you, if not smarter, at least a better investor.

As AI tools and bots become common, you may soon have five bots giving you five different ideas too, meaning knowledge paralysis could actually grow. That's why having someone you can turn to and ask for perspective remains valuable, and why the regulator still treats the intermediary as an important part of the process.

Based on Raghav's podcast with Sachin: https://foliyo.ai/blog/wealth-management-in-ai-era/
Disclaimer: All information shared above are strictly for educational and informational purposes only. It should not be construed as financial or investment advice.