How Being Early—and Patient—Transforms Returns (Patreon)

Thanks @Digits for sharing — a great reminder why I tell parents: start early, even small amounts in powerful assets can transform a child’s future. 🚀

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wild story in 2013, i begged my dad to help me invest in Tesla and elonmusk. i had never seen a company, product, or more importantly a founder have such a clear vision of the future. i had $1300 saved up from odd jobs and a birthday. he told me he would take care of it and i handed over the cash — all my money at the time. decisively all-in. back then, investing in individual stocks wasn't as easy as it is today.

@RobinhoodApp had just launched and so my dad had to navigate the mess that it was. he created an account on @etrade to place the investment. a multi-step, weeks long effort. life went on - i became busy with other things and assumed it was taken care of. a few years later, i asked him about it and he was fuzzy on the details. he didn't use etrade for anything else and couldn't confidently remember placing the actual investment. Tesla and Elon were now house-hold names. it hilariously became family meme — we missed out on tesla. fast forward to a few weeks ago, i was telling my dad about $OPEN. he decides to make an investment and goes to @etrade to setup an account (!!). during account setup, he's told that he already has an account with them. it was created in 2013. when he figured out how to log in, the dashboard displays the portfolio with its only holding — @Tesla. 225 shares purchased for $5.83. the total account value: $98,266.50

$1,300 → $98k.

he face-timed me today to share the news. it was electric. one of the coolest father-son moments i can remember. it's like finding a $20 in an old pair of pants on steroids. but more importantly it goes to show that investing in products, companies, and founders you believe in irrationally with a long-term mindset is the ultimate alpha. my plan for the funds? forget about them for another 12 years.