Why Must We Invest?

 [Why Must We Invest?]

"Why must we invest?"—this is an unavoidable topic when understanding the nature of money and the value of time.

In short:

💡 Investing is the only way to "make money and time work for you."

Below, we will explain the reasons from five perspectives in an easy-to-understand way.

🔹1. Because assets decrease in value in an era where simply "saving" is insufficient.

There was a time when "money would increase if you deposited it in a bank."

However, that's no longer the case.

Era Bank Interest Rate Inflation Rate Real Value of Money

1980s 5-6% 1-2% Increases

Present (2025) 0.001-0.2% Around 2-3% Decreases

In other words,

Even if you deposit 1 million yen in a bank, its real value will be approximately 980,000 yen after one year due to inflation.

"Saving alone" quietly diminishes your assets.

👉 Investing is also a "means to protect the value of your money from decreasing."

🔹2. Because the speed of increasing assets is slow with labor alone.

Even if a person with an annual income of 6 million yen saves 500,000 yen every year,

they will only save 10 million yen in 20 years.

On the other hand, if you invest the same 500,000 yen every year at 4% annual return:

➡️ It will become approximately 14.8 million yen.

(= A difference of 4.8 million yen. And without working.)

This is a state where "money works for you."

There are limits to labor income, but investing means that capital works in your place.

🔹3. Because investing means participating in the "game of capitalism."

Modern society is capitalist.

Capitalism is "a system where those who possess capital (money/assets) receive returns."

Companies: Invest capital to earn profits

Investors: Own a part of a company (shares) and receive dividends and capital gains

Workers: Sell their time to earn a salary

In other words, not investing = not being able to become part of the "owner side" of capitalism. No matter how hard you work, you won't become part of the "capital-owning side."

Investing is the act of changing your position from "worker to owner."

🔹4. Investing is the only way to make "time" your ally.

The greatest weapon of investing is the "compound interest effect (the snowball effect created by time)."

For example:

If you save 30,000 yen every month at 5% interest for 30 years → Approximately 24.9 million yen

If you save the same amount in a savings account (0.1%) → Approximately 10.8 million yen

In other words,

Even with the same amount of money, time x investment = more than double the difference.

Investing is a scientific mechanism for "increasing money with time."

🔹5. Investing is a means to gain "freedom."

What many people truly want is not "money" but "freedom."

There are three types of freedom:

Type of Freedom How Investing Relates

Freedom of Time A state where income is received without working (dividends, interest)

Mental Freedom Reduced anxiety about future finances

Freedom of Choice The ability to choose your preferred job, location, and people

Investing means taking back control of your life, shifting from **"working for money" to "making money work for you."**

This is not just asset management, but also a "change in lifestyle."

🧭 Conclusion: "Not investing" is also a risk.

Not investing = putting yourself in a world where asset value continues to decline.

Investing = becoming part of the side that protects and increases assets through the power of capital and time.

Therefore,

🚀 Investing is not done "to increase money," but "to protect the value of money and gain freedom."