Overview

Abhilash Rao spent seven years leading environment, health and safety at Indus Towers while investing his own money since 2006, surviving a 45 percent portfolio drop during the 2008 crisis but staying invested throughout. In 2017 he left corporate life to become a full time MFD, and now runs Ambitious Financial Consultants out of Nagpur, managing over 150 client accounts built on disciplined, goal based investing.

Key Points

• Invested 20 to 25 percent of his salary from his very first job in 2006
• Portfolio fell 45 percent in 2008 but he chose to stay invested
• First month commission as an MFD was only Rs.395 versus a Rs.1.5 lakh salary
• Secured 12 years of savings as a cushion before leaving his corporate job
• Separates risk capacity, a math question, from risk appetite, an emotional one

Takeaways

Abhilash treats managing client behavior, not chasing returns, as his real job, using process driven audits and risk profiling borrowed from his corporate career to keep clients calm and invested through volatility. He believes India is still at an early inflection point for mutual fund investing, with only about 2 lakh distributors serving a population of over 140 crore, leaving huge room for new, ethical advisors to grow.

Action Step

Before quitting a stable job, build a financial runway of a year or more while advising friends and family part time first.