Thai Van Linh shares the principles to achieve financial autonomy. — VNS Photo

To achieve financial independence, each individual to some extent should be self-employed or do something else besides his or her official job, according to Thai Van Linh, former Operations & Strategic Director of VinaCapital Venture Capital Fund.

Linh has been one the main “sharks” in the Vietnamese version of Shark Tank in the first two seasons.

"To achieve financial independence, we must sacrifice or exchange capital or time," Linh said.

In her talk show held in HCM City last week, she advised young people to start executing possible new business ideas. It is not necessary to start up by establishing your own companies, but having an extra job or selling goods online is beneficial. Earnings from part-time jobs often contribute significantly to financial autonomy.

Another way to have financial autonomy is investment. There are now many forms of investment for people with little capital such as securities investment, and capital contributions to friends.

"But I always remind myself that the line between investment and gambling is very fragile. Gambling depends on luck. We can’t know when we win or when we lose. Investing is using our knowledge and experience to minimise risk of lost assets," Linh said.

“We must accept risks involved in investment and to minimise the risks, we must study deeply about the company and the field in which we want to invest.”

Many people think that graduating from college or universities is enough, but this is not true because improving knowledge and expanding relationships are always necessary for a career, she said, adding that this is why she prioritises part of her earnings toward self-development.

This principle is very important, but it has been ignored by most young people because courses and events to add knowledge often cost some money and it is relatively difficult to perceive the effect of these courses and events immediately, she said. — VNS