When Do You Have Enough Money? Girish Ajgaonkar On Investing For The Life You Want

A healthy bank balance can offer reassurance. So can a portfolio that has performed well. But how do you know whether you have enough money to live the life you want?

Girish Ajgaonkar, Chief Operating Officer of Mumbai-based Happyness Factory, put that question to the audience at Outlook Money’s The Money Question: Where Should You Invest Now. Happyness Factory is a goal-based investing firm and an AMFI-registered mutual fund distributor. Drawing on the firm’s experience with investors across wealth segments, Ajgaonkar discussed why financial clarity matters as much as investment returns.

Here are edited excerpts from his interactive session.

Girish Ajgaonkar: How do you know whether you are doing well financially? What tells you that you are financially sorted?

Audience members: Bank balance / Being able to sleep peacefully / Buying something without checking its price.

Girish Ajgaonkar: Those are all good answers. Let me ask another question: How many of you are confident that you have enough money now, or that you will have enough when you need it in the future?

Financial uncertainty is common, even among people who appear to have substantial wealth. We see it in conversations with investors who have portfolios worth Rs 10 crore or Rs 20 crore. They may still wonder whether they have enough.

I came across a line that captures this feeling: “When clarity is missing, even abundance feels like scarcity.”

What Kind Of Clarity Do Investors Need?

Girish Ajgaonkar: You probably know your bank balance and what is in your portfolio. You can find plenty of opinions on where the market might go. The clarity I am talking about is different: What do you want your money to do for you? What kind of life do you want it to support?

Without an answer, it is easy to become preoccupied with questions such as: Is this the right time to invest? Should I book profits? Which mutual fund is best? Some investors ask, naya kya hai—what is new? They want something more exciting to invest in.

I once met an investor with a portfolio of Rs 23 crore who was unhappy with a return of about 15 per cent. He wanted 18 per cent. When I asked why, his answer was, “Because it feels good.”

There is nothing wrong with wanting a higher return. But you should understand what that additional return would change in your life. Your financial needs are personal; a comparison with a benchmark cannot tell you whether you will have enough for them.

When we focus only on products and returns, we can overlook future needs, invest because others are doing so, and collect assets without a clear purpose. After years of investing, the original question may remain: Do I have enough?

What Is An Investor’s Biggest Risk?

Audience members: Permanent loss of capital / uncertainty / falling short of goals.

Girish Ajgaonkar: We talk about inflation, volatility, and capital loss. These matters because they can affect the life you hoped to live. To me, the biggest risk is earning and investing for decades, yet being unable to live that life.

Financial well-being includes control over day-to-day finances, the ability to absorb a financial shock, progress towards goals, and the freedom to make choices that let you enjoy life. It is about having confidence that money will be available when you need it.

From Return On Investment To Return On Life

Girish Ajgaonkar: Most of us focus on return on investment, or ROI. Author Mitch Anthony has described another idea: return on life, or ROL. It starts with a different question: What would it take to live the life I want?

Think about your well-being, your sense of progress, and your freedom to use your time as you choose. Each has a financial dimension. What kind of home do you want? What protection do you need for your health and family? What experiences matter to you? What would you like retirement to look like?

This process helps you put a number to the four needs. Longevity covers essential expenses over a potentially long life. Lifestyle covers the discretionary spending that matters to you. Legacy is what you want to leave behind. Liquidity is the money you need access to when something unexpected happens.

Once you have estimated those needs, you can ask whether your assets are sufficient to fund them. If they are, you have a reason to feel confident. If they are not, you know what needs attention. Either way, you have a basis for your investment decisions.

Products, returns, and benchmarks still have a place in the discussion. But start by deciding what you want your money to support. You are financially sorted when your money quietly supports the life you have consciously chosen.

FAQs

1. How do I know if I have enough money?
Estimate what you will need for essential expenses, the lifestyle you want, emergencies and any legacy you hope to leave. Then compare those needs with your assets.

2. Why might a large portfolio still leave someone financially anxious?
A portfolio balance alone does not show whether it can support the life you want. That uncertainty can remain even as your wealth grows.

3. What does “return on life” mean?
It means judging how well your money supports your well-being, goals, and freedom to make choices, alongside the returns your investments earn.