Geldanlage: Zehn Dinge, die ich als Anfänger über ETFs gelernt habe

When I first started investing my pocket money, my financial strategy revolved around spending as little as possible. While my brother invested most of his money in mixed packs, I kept mine for myself. Eventually, all my earnings, with a few exceptions in fixed-interest accounts, ended up in a regular savings account. It may not surprise you to learn that I grew up as a classic left-green humanities graduate, more interested in U.S. political affairs than my personal finances.

However, that changed when I had to restructure my private pension last year. After all, that was the reason I had been diligent about since 2008, with a degree in hand. Back then, I had taken out a pension insurance policy based on stock funds from a friend, which, of course, is never a good idea. Everything seemed very secure.

I didn't think twice and signed the paperwork. I glanced at the annual overview letter, dutifully, without scrutinizing it more closely. Even a savings book would have highlighted the matter. The fact that I took a closer look last year is probably also due to my switch to the Handelsblatt. It is impossible to ignore one's finances after a while.

At 42, I discovered that after more than 15 years and contributions exceeding €20,000, I had made only €1,000 in profit. Despite the stock markets performing reasonably well during this period.