Hey everyone,
I’m 35 years old with about a $500k net worth and lately I’ve been struggling with the feeling that I “should” already be at $1M by now.
The weird part is that logically I know I’m doing well. Most of my adult life I made around $50–55k/year, and only over the last ~5 years has my income increased to around $80–100k because I’m commission based. Honestly, younger me never would’ve imagined having this level of wealth at 35.
Almost all of my investments are in the S&P 500 and low-cost ETFs. I’ve always liked passive investing because I don’t follow earnings calls, don’t keep up with companies daily, and generally don’t want investing to become a second job.
That said, I can’t shake the feeling that I’m leaving gains on the table by not investing more aggressively. I do own some crypto, so I’m not completely against risk, but I’ve also been burned multiple times trying to pick individual stocks. Those experiences made me cautious because I don’t want to ruin what has otherwise been a really strong start financially.
Recently I opened a separate brokerage account specifically for growth stocks/tech. I haven’t decided whether to: move a percentage of my current portfolio into it, or just contribute monthly and treat it as a smaller “high growth” side account.
Part of me feels like tech/AI is where the future is headed, especially with how much analysts talk about automation replacing jobs over the next 5–10 years. It seems logical to invest in the industries shaping that future. But I also realize “good story” doesn’t automatically mean “good investment.”
My biggest issue is that I honestly don’t know how to evaluate individual stocks properly:
How do you actually determine whether a stock is a good buy?
How do you evaluate earnings reports?
How do you balance growth potential vs. valuation/risk?
At what point does chasing higher returns become unnecessary risk?
My goal is to hit $1M by around age 41, ideally sooner if possible. For me, that number represents buying back time and freedom more than anything else.
I’d also say I’m naturally pretty frugal, but I do enjoy nice experiences/travel/etc. At the same time, I carry a lot of financial stress despite objectively being in a solid position, and I know I’m fairly risk averse deep down.
So I guess I’m looking for advice from people who have been in a similar position:
Did you stay mostly in index funds?
Did you allocate a small percentage to higher-risk growth plays?
How do you evaluate whether taking more risk is actually worth it?
Am I thinking about this the wrong way entirely?
Any perspectives are appreciated.