Should you invest yourself or let professionals do the job for you?

Ask whether your performance as a fund manager is superior on the basis of an objective assessment

- DEVINA MEHRA

I don't know that much about stock markets, but want to start investing in equities.

"What is the point of just investing with mutual funds and portfolio management services (PMSes)? I want to learn and do it myself."

These are some of the questions I get. Often, the unsaid part is, "It is so boring to say that I am invested in a combination of fixed deposits, mutual funds and PMSes. What do I say when my friends brag about the latest multi-bagger they unearthed? And anyway I am smarter than most of these so-called experts."

The question all these investors need to ask themselves is: Is managing your portfolio yourself the best way to invest in equities? After all, why use financial advisors and fund managers if you can avoid it? So, should you be a do-it-yourself (DIY) investor or is it better to leave the decision making and portfolio management to professionals?

First off, investing yourself is the best way-actually, the only way-to understand how the stock market game works. And learning is always a laudable objective!

However, do think of this another way too: based on data, are you the very best fund manager you know? Logically, that should decide whether you should manage your own funds.