Did my dad's advice save me or did I just get lucky?

I’m a foreigner investing in U.S. stocks. Three years ago, I asked my dad if he could give me $50,000 as an early inheritance to help with my wedding and a house purchase. After some thought, he agreed but had conditions. Instead of giving me the whole amount at once, he decided to send it in installments of $5,000 a month over 10 months, splitting each into $2,500 on the 1st and 15th.

At the time, I wanted to put it all into EV stocks like Lucid, Tesla, and Rivian because I had some success with Lucid before. This was back in late 2021 when the market was at its peak. My dad’s cautious approach annoyed me, but I had no choice. Then 2022 hit, and the market dropped due to various factors like the Ukraine war. I ended up dollar-cost averaging (DCA) into big tech stocks like Nvidia, Apple, Microsoft, and Amazon.

Fast forward two years, those investments grew to $150,000, with Nvidia alone giving a 700% return. On the other hand, the EV stocks I bought earlier with my own money tanked, leaving me with a $20,000 loss. If I’d gone all-in on EVs, I’d still be in a big hole.

I feel lucky more than skilled. This taught me the value of DCA and diversification. Thanks to my dad’s wisdom, I avoided a huge mistake. Just wanted to share this story!

You’re focusing on the wrong part. If you had lump-summed into Nvidia, you’d have way more now. The real takeaway is diversification.

Ari said:
You’re focusing on the wrong part. If you had lump-summed into Nvidia, you’d have way more now. The real takeaway is diversification.

True, and honestly, it wasn’t that diversified. Most of the gains came from Nvidia, and let’s be real, hitting a stock like that is mostly luck.

@Weston
I actually love bad years for tech stocks. It’s usually macro fears or rate hikes, not the companies themselves. I bought heavy in 2022, and it paid off. Another crash would be a dream for me.

Ari said:
You’re focusing on the wrong part. If you had lump-summed into Nvidia, you’d have way more now. The real takeaway is diversification.

He learned about investing other people’s money… oh wait, wrong forum. Should we cross-post this to WallStreetBets?

Ari said:
You’re focusing on the wrong part. If you had lump-summed into Nvidia, you’d have way more now. The real takeaway is diversification.

Let’s be honest, he didn’t learn much. It was mostly gambling. OP should read something like ‘A Simple Path to Wealth.’

@Eliot
Are you talking about JL Collins’ book? I’m just starting to invest and want to be smart about it. Any other good recommendations?

Ari said:
You’re focusing on the wrong part. If you had lump-summed into Nvidia, you’d have way more now. The real takeaway is diversification.

He basically timed the market by accident.

Ari said:
You’re focusing on the wrong part. If you had lump-summed into Nvidia, you’d have way more now. The real takeaway is diversification.

Lucid is like the Hardee’s of EVs.

Keir said:

Ari said:
You’re focusing on the wrong part. If you had lump-summed into Nvidia, you’d have way more now. The real takeaway is diversification.

Lucid is like the Hardee’s of EVs.

Not sure if that’s a compliment or not.

@Avery
Decent burger, but no one goes there.

Haru said:
@Avery
Decent burger, but no one goes there.

Sounds like old people are their main customers, just like Lucid.

Haru said:
@Avery
Decent burger, but no one goes there.

Hardee’s is gross. Threw mine away after two bites.

Keir said:

Ari said:
You’re focusing on the wrong part. If you had lump-summed into Nvidia, you’d have way more now. The real takeaway is diversification.

Lucid is like the Hardee’s of EVs.

So does that make Arrival the Captain D’s of EVs?

“I decided to inherit some money from my father.”

Man, poor people hate hearing stuff like this.

Paris said:
“I decided to inherit some money from my father.”

Man, poor people hate hearing stuff like this.

Yeah, the way OP worded that made it sound like he was owed the money. His dad just gave him $50K, no strings attached, but he acts like it was part of some grand plan.

@Bailey
I’ve seen this with some families. The parents act like it’s an early inheritance to justify giving their kids large amounts of money.

Delaney said:
@Bailey
I’ve seen this with some families. The parents act like it’s an early inheritance to justify giving their kids large amounts of money.

Honestly, sounds like a parenting issue to me.

@Bailey
My parents are doing something similar with small amounts due to inheritance taxes. It’s nice, but man, I wish I could get $50K right now!