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The order of operations

Most beginners start at step 9 (picking a fund) and skip steps 1–8. The order below is deliberate: each step protects the ones after it. Tick items off as you complete them — this page remembers.

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Phase 1 · Protect

Before a single rupee is invested

Know your monthly number

Track one full month of spending. You can't size an emergency fund or a SIP around a number you don't know.

Kill expensive debt first

Credit cards (36–42%) and personal loans (11–24%) charge more than markets return. Paying them off is a guaranteed, tax-free "return" no fund can match. Home loans at ~8–9% can coexist with investing.

Build the emergency fund

6–12 months of essential expenses in a savings account + sweep FD or liquid fund. Size yours here.

Buy health insurance beyond your employer's

A personal ₹5–10L family floater. Employer cover vanishes the day you change jobs — which is often exactly when you can least afford a gap.

Buy term insurance — if anyone depends on your income

Pure term cover of 10–15× annual income. No ULIPs, no endowment, no money-back — those are the products the guide warns about. No dependants = skip this step entirely.

Phase 2 · Prepare

Paperwork & plumbing

Complete your KYC

PAN + Aadhaar, done online in minutes on any fund platform. One-time; unlocks every mutual fund in India.

Pick a Direct-plan platform

The AMC's own site, MF Central, Kuvera, Zerodha Coin, or Groww — anywhere that sells Direct plans with zero commission. Confirm the word "Direct" appears in the fund name before buying.

Write down 2–3 goals with numbers and dates

"₹25L house deposit by 2032" beats "save more". The goal planner converts each into a monthly SIP.

Decide your equity/debt split

Start with 100 − age, adjust for your stomach. Write it down — this is the number you'll rebalance back to each year.

Phase 3 · Invest

The part everyone starts with

Start one SIP into a broad index fund

A Nifty 50 or Nifty 500 index fund, Direct plan, expense ratio under 0.3%. One fund is a complete start — you can add a debt fund or international exposure later. Date it 2–3 days after salary day.

Automate it fully

Auto-debit mandate so it happens without you. The SIP you have to remember is the SIP that stops in a scary market — automation is behaviour insurance.

Add nominees on every account

Bank, demat, every fund folio, EPF, insurance. Two minutes each. Unclaimed assets in India run to tens of thousands of crores — mostly money families couldn't find or claim.

Make the one-page money map

Every account, platform, insurance policy and roughly what's in it, on one page your spouse/family can find. Update it yearly.

Phase 4 · Maintain

The annual 30 minutes

Step up the SIP every raise

Increase the SIP by 5–10% (or half of every raise) each year. The calculator shows how dramatically this changes the endgame.

Rebalance once a year

If your 70/30 split has drifted to 80/20, sell a little equity, buy a little debt. Once a year, same date every year. That's the entire maintenance schedule.

Audit your fees annually

Check every holding: is it a Direct plan? What's the expense ratio? Any regular-plan funds an old advisor sold you? The fee tool shows what each one is costing.

Commit to ignoring the noise

No acting on news, tips, or crashes. Markets will fall 30%+ during your investing life — the plan survives if you do nothing. This box is a promise to your future self.

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