Ndubuisi 'Andy' EgwimMoney Coach for Medics|Ex-NHS GP|21+ Yrs Investor| Founder, MoneyWiseDoctor.com|Helping Medics Avoid Big Money Mistakes

Safety first before investing

3 Oct 2026 · 1 min

Watch on YouTube

1:16

In this YouTube monologue, Ndubuisi 'Andy' Egwim warns viewers that before committing any spare cash to stock market investments, they must first establish a financial safety net. He outlines realistic life disruptions—car breakdowns, boiler failures, job loss, medical emergencies, or urgent travel—that require immediate cash. He explains that if all spare money is tied up in equities and a market crash occurs, investors may be forced to sell at a loss, turning a temporary dip into a permanent loss. Drawing on his personal experience of surviving three major market crashes, Andy emphasizes that he never faced pressure to liquidate his holdings because he kept an emergency reserve. The core message is that investments should not be the first source of funds for unexpected expenses; safety and liquidity must come first.

Chapters

What happens when life happens? When things don't go to plan? Do you have a financial safety net in place? Are you about to invest your last penny? What happens if your car breaks down, your boiler packs up, you lose your job? You don't pray for these things, but you have to plan. You have to prepare. You suddenly need to fly home because of an emergency, family emergency. You have an unexpected medical bill. Life is life. These things could happen. Where does that money come from? Suppose virtually all your spare money is invested in shares, then an emergency happens. And unfortunately, if it happens during a market crash, and market crashes do happen, if a market crash is happening and your investments are down 30%, you need the money. So now you are forced to sell at a loss, even though these are solid companies. And something that might have been a temporary fall in value becomes a permanent loss for you because you had no choice but to sell your stocks or even index funds. I've lived through 3 major market crashes as an investor. And one thing that helped me enormously was this: I wasn't under any pressure to sell, especially in the last 2. In fact, if I desperately needed that money during the crash, I might have crystallized those losses and I had to start again. So before investing, think about keeping aside money for emergencies. Your investments shouldn't have to be sold to rescue every financial emergency. Safety first.