Home > Career > Question
Need Expert Advice?Our Gurus Can Help
R P

R P Yadav  | Answer  |Ask -

HR, Workspace Expert - Answered on Mar 23, 2023

R P Yadav is the founder, chairman and managing director of Genius Consultants Limited, a 30-year-old human resources solutions company.
Over the years, he has been the recipient of numerous awards including the Lifetime Achievement Award from World HR Congress and HR Person Of The Year from Public Relations Council of India.
... more
Pankaj Question by Pankaj on Mar 22, 2023Hindi
Listen
Career

Hi I am 45 and single. After my mother's sad demise i am bit depressed and i am not able to do the work and indulge myself in day to day activities. Kindly help

Ans: Dear Pankaj,
Losing parents is always very sad but this is the only truth which always prevails. One has to accept this and move on in life. You can engage yourself more with other family members, friends, relatives and colleagues which will help you to come out of the depression and concentrate more on your profession and work.
Career

You may like to see similar questions and answers below

Anu

Anu Krishna  |1604 Answers  |Ask -

Relationships Expert, Mind Coach - Answered on Oct 06, 2020

Listen
Relationship
Hi Anu, I have depression. I am unable to sleep, have lost appetite, drowned in my own thoughts. The reason for my depression is that I had gone to Australia to pursue my Masters, however the course went online from the first day itself and I could not meet anyone or make any friends. I felt completely isolated in a foreign country. I found the online classes quite hard and not beneficial. Therefore I cancelled my enrollment and came back to India. However I feel ashamed of myself quitting the course midway, but my parents have always supported my decision. I have excellent grades in my bachelors degree, but when I returned from Australia, I lost all my focus and just stressed out what will happen tomorrow. Kindly help me on how do I overcome this.
Ans: Dear Lost Guy, can you firstly be thankful that you have such wonderful parents who stand by your decision and love and support you?

Second, unless you have been clinically diagnosed, you don’t have depression.

What you possibly are feeling is upset, sad and disappointed and inability to sleep or losing appetite can be because of this.

What you might want to do is ask: “Why did I cancel my enrolment when I could have gone through the course like many others would have?

Now that I am back in India, what best can I do to pursue a course that will put me back in the game without any more loss of time?”

Focus on what you want and you will see your energies return.

Simply draw a picture of what you wanted to do always; agreed that the location might have changed, but you are the same person who wanted to do his Masters.

Who knows what India might have in store for you!

And put on those jogging shoes and hit the track; it can positively impact the mind and do remember: Every challenge has an opportunity for growth and YES you CAN.

Wishing you a beautiful future!

..Read more

Anu

Anu Krishna  |1604 Answers  |Ask -

Relationships Expert, Mind Coach - Answered on Sep 20, 2021

Listen
Relationship
I don't know how to start but things are not good in my life. I lost my father 3 months back which still does not go out of my head. I met a girl recently and developed some sort of feelings for her but she is not at all interested in me which made me more sad as I feel as I am just not good enough. Due to my professional work I am not living with my family and their tensions extra. I have zero friends who talk regularly to me or ask about me. I have a thin body so people body shame me and it decreases my morale and confidence. Profession is also not going as good I thought due to relationship issues with my manager. Everything is making me more sad and lonely. Please give me something to cheer. Don't want to live life like this.. I am writing this with a heavy heart.
Ans: Dear HS, I am truly sorry for your loss; the passing away of a loved one is never easy on anyone.

Now let’s focus on what you might be bothered by. See, if you are going to depend on the external environment to increase your confidence or self-esteem, then you are setting yourself up for a rude disappointment.

Your state of mind is your choice which is the one that dictates how you perceive the environment around you.

If you wake every morning feeling sorry for yourself, do you think you are going to perform well at work?

Shying away from a social life just because you are body shamed pushes you back into an unfavorable state of mind where you shut away even a few ‘good’ people.

Why deprive yourself of the little joys just because some people measure you by how you look?

What do you get by giving into that drama that these people have created?

More agony, I presume! And then the loop goes on and on…

Do check a few inspiring videos on how people have overcome body shaming and take a leaf out of it and start living for who you are; people start respecting you when you respect yourself first.

Well, romantic feelings sometimes may not be reciprocated; but you feel sad because you already are in a self-pity mode; what if your mind space was stronger?

A rejection from a girl, would have still been fine and would have been easy to move on.

Sorry, I need to be honest and show you the mirror, rather than just cheer you up. Get up, stand tall, show up. Show Up, no matter what!

Respect yourself for who you are…you are your best Ally…Now, I want you to dust yourself off of all the feelings that are not useful and Show Up and Take Charge…watch how things change…

Best wishes and simply Show Up…You can do this…

..Read more

Anu

Anu Krishna  |1604 Answers  |Ask -

Relationships Expert, Mind Coach - Answered on Sep 21, 2023

Latest Questions
Ramalingam

Ramalingam Kalirajan  |8511 Answers  |Ask -

Mutual Funds, Financial Planning Expert - Answered on May 24, 2025

Money
Hi Sir, I'm a 36 yrs aged software employee working in Hyderabad with monthly in hand salary of 120k and withs 2 kids my son(his age is around 4 yrs) and my daughter (her age is around 2yrs). I have the following investments as of today. 1) PPF -8.5 Lakhs (12500/- monthly contribution) 2) Sukanya(SSY)- 4.8 Lakhs (12500/- monthly contribution) 3) NPS - 1.5 lakhs (8560/- monthly contribution) 4) EPFO - 6.5 Lakhs 5) NPS Vastalya (My son) - 13k (1k monthly contribution) 6) Post office RPLI (My wife) - 1.3 lakhs (22000/- yearly contribution) after the above all deductions, I can save 50k per month. My long term goal is buying a flat/house along with my retirement plan in next 10 yrs and need take care of my children education & marriage. I don't have any accumulated amount for down payment for buying a flat/house. What would be best approach to purchase a flat/house in Hyderabad ? should I take a home loan and buy a flat immediately in next 1/2 yrs (or) Should I invest an SIP of 50K per month for 5/10 yrs then buy ?
Ans: Thank you for sharing detailed information. You already have a disciplined approach to savings. You are clearly focused on long-term goals. Let's now look at the best approach to meet those goals.

 
 
 

Income and Savings Review
Your monthly in-hand salary is Rs.1.2 lakh. That gives a good base.

 
 
 

After all deductions, you can save Rs.50,000 monthly. That is a strong habit.

 
 
 

With two kids, financial responsibilities are high. You are still managing savings. Appreciate it.

 
 
 

Let’s now assess each of your investments.

 
 
 

Review of Existing Investments
PPF of Rs.8.5 lakh with Rs.12,500 monthly. Good for long-term. Safe and tax-free.

 
 
 

Sukanya for your daughter with Rs.4.8 lakh is well-planned. Continue it till she turns 14.

 
 
 

NPS of Rs.1.5 lakh with Rs.8,560 monthly. It builds retirement corpus. Continue it.

 
 
 

EPFO of Rs.6.5 lakh is part of your salary benefits. That’s a stable addition to retirement.

 
 
 

NPS for your son is a new initiative. It’s too early to predict its usefulness.

 
 
 

Post office RPLI in wife’s name with Rs.1.3 lakh. Yearly Rs.22,000 is manageable.

 
 
 

Overall, you have built a strong base with safe and regular investments. But these are mostly conservative. They may not beat inflation by a good margin.

 
 
 

Let’s now look at your primary goals.

 
 
 

Goal 1: Buying a Flat in Hyderabad
This is a big financial goal. Needs careful planning and timing.

 
 
 

You have zero savings for down payment now. That limits immediate action.

 
 
 

Buying now through a loan will put pressure on your cash flow.

 
 
 

If you go for loan now, EMI may be Rs.30,000–Rs.35,000 monthly.

 
 
 

That leaves you with very little for future goals and emergencies.

 
 
 

It is better to avoid rushing to buy flat now.

 
 
 

You can start a savings plan for down payment. Build at least Rs.6–8 lakh in 3–4 years.

 
 
 

Then you can take loan for balance amount. EMI will be safer then.

 
 
 

This way, your financial stress remains low.

 
 
 

Should You Wait or Buy Now?
Let’s compare both approaches carefully.

 
 
 

Buy Flat Immediately:

EMI pressure starts immediately. About Rs.30,000–Rs.35,000 per month.

 
 
 

You won’t be able to invest Rs.50,000 monthly anymore.

 
 
 

No funds left for kids’ future or your retirement.

 
 
 

You will be forced to stop current PPF or NPS contributions.

 
 
 

Not a safe approach. Will affect your other goals badly.

 
 
 

Wait and Invest for 5 Years:

Invest Rs.50,000 every month for 5 years.

 
 
 

You can build a down payment corpus of Rs.6–8 lakh easily.

 
 
 

Invest this amount in regular mutual funds with CFP guidance.

 
 
 

You can plan your home buying calmly. With less loan burden.

 
 
 

Your EMI will start only after 5 years. By then income also will grow.

 
 
 

Verdict: Wait and invest. Buy later. More secure path.

 
 
 

About Mutual Funds for SIP
SIP is best way to grow money in a planned way.

 
 
 

You should go for actively managed mutual funds.

 
 
 

Avoid index funds. They just follow index. No protection in falling market.

 
 
 

Actively managed funds try to give higher return than index.

 
 
 

They select good companies using deep research.

 
 
 

Use regular mutual funds through MFD with CFP support.

 
 
 

Avoid direct mutual funds. No help, no monitoring, no personal advice.

 
 
 

Regular funds provide tracking, rebalancing and expert guidance.

 
 
 

For you, regular plans through CFP will reduce risk and improve returns.

 
 
 

Start SIP of Rs.50,000 monthly in 3 to 4 funds.

 
 
 

Mix of large, mid and flexi-cap funds can work well.

 
 
 

Over 5 years, this SIP will help in flat down payment.

 
 
 

After that, you can reduce SIP and start EMI for flat.

 
 
 

Also continue SIP with lower amount for retirement and kids’ goals.

 
 
 

Retirement Planning
You are 36 now. Planning retirement early is smart.

 
 
 

NPS and EPFO are your current retirement tools.

 
 
 

They are safe but not flexible. Returns also moderate.

 
 
 

Mutual funds SIP gives better flexibility and return potential.

 
 
 

You can assign one fund’s SIP fully to your retirement goal.

 
 
 

You need bigger retirement fund. So SIP is needed even after NPS and EPFO.

 
 
 

Don’t rely only on NPS. Add mutual fund SIP to build a proper retirement fund.

 
 
 

Children’s Education and Marriage Planning
Your son is 4. Your daughter is 2. You have 13–16 years for education planning.

 
 
 

Sukanya is good for daughter. But more is needed.

 
 
 

For both kids, education cost will be high.

 
 
 

Start separate SIP for each child’s education.

 
 
 

You can start with Rs.10,000 each per month. Adjust based on your income.

 
 
 

Use separate mutual funds for these goals.

 
 
 

Later, assign some part of PPF maturity also for child marriage.

 
 
 

Avoid child insurance plans. Low return, high cost, and lock-in.

 
 
 

SIP in regular funds gives better flexibility and growth.

 
 
 

Emergency Fund
Emergency fund is must for every family.

 
 
 

Keep at least 6 months’ salary as emergency money.

 
 
 

That is Rs.7.2 lakh in your case.

 
 
 

Use bank savings or liquid mutual funds for this.

 
 
 

Emergency fund is not for investing. Don’t mix it with SIP.

 
 
 

Build this fund slowly over 6–8 months.

 
 
 

Insurance Review
You have RPLI for wife. That is a savings product.

 
 
 

You need pure term insurance. Sum assured of Rs.1 crore is needed.

 
 
 

Premium is low. Life protection is high.

 
 
 

No need for ULIPs or investment-cum-insurance plans.

 
 
 

Also check for proper health insurance for family.

 
 
 

Don’t depend only on office health plan.

 
 
 

Tax Efficiency
Your current investments give good tax benefits.

 
 
 

PPF, Sukanya, NPS all have tax benefits.

 
 
 

EPFO also gives tax-free interest.

 
 
 

Mutual funds have long-term tax advantages too.

 
 
 

LTCG above Rs.1.25 lakh is taxed at 12.5%.

 
 
 

STCG taxed at 20%. Still better than FD or RD taxation.

 
 
 

Mutual funds help in better tax planning in long term.

 
 
 

What You Can Do Now – Step-by-Step
Start SIP of Rs.50,000 monthly in 3–4 mutual funds.

 
 
 

Take help from CFP for selecting right funds.

 
 
 

Review current RPLI. Keep only if not affecting liquidity.

 
 
 

Buy term life cover of Rs.1 crore immediately.

 
 
 

Start emergency fund. Target Rs.7.2 lakh over 1 year.

 
 
 

Start planning for home buying after 4–5 years.

 
 
 

Rebalance your investments every year with your CFP.

 
 
 

Track progress of each goal separately.

 
 
 

Don’t take any loan now. Wait until you are ready.

 
 
 

Finally
You have done a good job with disciplined savings.

 
 
 

But now, you need to shift from saving to smart investing.

 
 
 

Mutual funds with CFP guidance will take your goals forward.

 
 
 

Avoid direct funds and index funds. Use active regular funds.

 
 
 

Delay home buying. Build your down payment through SIP first.

 
 
 

Continue PPF, NPS and Sukanya. But add mutual fund SIP for higher growth.

 
 
 

Keep insurance pure and simple. No ULIPs or endowment plans.

 
 
 

Follow this roadmap. All your goals can be met peacefully.

 
 
 

Best Regards,
 
K. Ramalingam, MBA, CFP,
 
Chief Financial Planner,
 
www.holisticinvestment.in
 
https://www.youtube.com/@HolisticInvestment

...Read more

DISCLAIMER: The content of this post by the expert is the personal view of the rediffGURU. Investment in securities market are subject to market risks. Read all the related document carefully before investing. The securities quoted are for illustration only and are not recommendatory. Users are advised to pursue the information provided by the rediffGURU only as a source of information and as a point of reference and to rely on their own judgement when making a decision. RediffGURUS is an intermediary as per India's Information Technology Act.

Close  

You haven't logged in yet. To ask a question, Please Log in below
Login

A verification OTP will be sent to this
Mobile Number / Email

Enter OTP
A 6 digit code has been sent to

Resend OTP in120seconds

Dear User, You have not registered yet. Please register by filling the fields below to get expert answers from our Gurus
Sign up

By signing up, you agree to our
Terms & Conditions and Privacy Policy

Already have an account?

Enter OTP
A 6 digit code has been sent to Mobile

Resend OTP in120seconds

x