Outsmart your parents by following this simple trick

Outsmart your parents by following this simple trick

I went to my hometown for a long weekend recently, and without a doubt my parents were overjoyed to see me, not forgetting to pamper me with their love and stuffing me with my favourite dishes. And why not, it had been a long time since I visited them. One morning, when we ran out of stories of relatives and office gossip, I was faced with the inevitable. As my father took a big bite of mummy’s delicious aalu parantha, he popped the question, “What have you planned for the future?”

Till the last time I visited home, I had wished they wouldn’t confront me with this question, but this time I was ready. I had the perfect answers to all the questions that would come in my direction. I started with a confident smile, “Dad I have started saving money.”

“Just saving and investing won’t do anything, insuring yourself is also important. What if you’re married tomorrow and something unfortunate happens to you; how will your wife and kids survive?”

“Oh, so you have already decided that I’ll have kids, that’s interesting!” I continued, “Well, don’t worry about that, I’ve invested in a ULIPs - Unit Linked Insurance Plan. It shall give me dual benefits of investing and insurance. Moreover, I’ll save tax for the premiums, too.”

He was surprised; I knew so much! He continued to listen to me as I explained that now with ULIP, I was not just investing but also insuring myself. He seemed impressed. 

The conversation took an interesting turn into how government jobs were better than corporate jobs. He, having been a government employee all throughout his career, always praised it for the various benefits the job offered as compared to my corporate job. Benefits like, more holidays, better work timings, salary, a home, health benefits and pension. When he mentioned “pension”, it brought a smile on my face. I said, “Dad, that’s also covered!” Dad went silent for few seconds, “How come?” I proudly explained, “I’ve started investing in annuities. Once I retire, I will receive a certain amount of money every month to cover my expenses, just like your monthly pension.” 

My dad, as he tried his best to outsmart me, asked me this: “So, do you earn that much, to take care of your daily expenses, additional expenses and all these investments?” I smiled again, “Yeah sure, these investment plans don’t require large sums of money, one can start with a minimal amount as much as Rs. 500.” 

“You’re 30 now, do you think you’ll be able to save enough for your future?” he tried his luck with this final question. I took a deep breath, “Dad, it’s better to be a little late than never. After all what matters is that I’ve started investing in my future. Over the course of the next 20-30 years, the initial investments can compound at 15 times! Soon, when I get a salary hike, I’ll increase the premium amount. My investment plan lets me customize according to my needs.” 

Finally, my dad gave up, gave a smile and said, “I’m proud of you.” 

“After all, I didn’t turn out all that bad, eh!” We laughed, as we got up from the dining table. Thanks to my advisors at Edelweiss Tokio Life Insurance, he hasn’t questioned me about my future plans ever since.