The Night Google Judged Me for Not Investing Yet
(How I started investing on wealthsimple) I’ll never forget the exact moment I started questioning my entire financial life. It was a random Tuesday night, around 11:47 PM — that time of evening when your brain suddenly becomes dramatic for no reason. I was scrolling TikTok like any normal twenty-something, fully prepared to waste another hour of my life watching people cook pasta at 2x speed. Then, out of nowhere, this guy pops up talking about how he retired early at thirty-two because he started “investing young.” He said it so casually it felt like a personal attack. Like he specifically came to my “For You” page to shame me. Meanwhile, I was still trying to figure out why my debit card kept asking me if I wanted to pay “credit or chequing” when I clearly only had chequing.
So naturally, I did what any responsible adult with mild panic does — I Googled “how to invest in Canada” while lying in bed wearing a hoodie that hadn’t been washed in a week. That’s when I saw it:
Wealthsimple.
Clean. Friendly. Welcoming.
Suspiciously welcoming, honestly.
My first thought was, “Okay, this looks too easy. Real investing shouldn’t look this gentle.” But as I kept reading, I realized this wasn’t some intense trading platform with charts that look like heart-rate monitors. It didn’t ask me to be a genius. It didn’t even ask me to pretend I knew what a mutual fund was. All I kept seeing was stuff like “Investing on Wealthsimple is easy” and “Start investing with as little as $1.” And because I’m dramatic, I took that personally. I had more than $1. I could do this. Probably.
By midnight, I had opened six tabs, watched three YouTube videos, texted my cousin, questioned my life choices again, read what a TFSA actually means (for the first time), and after all that, I still wasn’t totally sure what the difference between an ETF and a stock was. But I did feel something I hadn’t felt before when it came to money:
Possibility.
That was the moment the idea was born:
Maybe this “investing thing” wasn’t just for people who wear suits for fun.
Maybe someone like me — someone who buys iced coffee even when it’s snowing — could actually start investing on Wealthsimple and not completely mess it up.
That thought alone was enough to push me over the edge
Downloading Wealthsimple Felt Like Signing Up for Adulthood
The next morning, I downloaded the Wealthsimple app before I even got out of bed. The sun wasn’t fully up yet. My hair was pointing in seven different directions. I was wearing socks that definitely didn’t match. And yet, there I was, deciding to “start my investment journey.” If my mom had walked in, she probably would’ve screamed from the shock.
Setting up Wealthsimple was weirdly easy. Almost… suspiciously easy. I thought there would be finance quizzes or complicated forms or someone asking me to calculate the square root of inflation. But no. Wealthsimple guided me through it like it knew I needed help — like it could sense the beginner in me. It asked me questions I actually understood, like “What are you saving for?” and “How comfortable are you with ups and downs?” That last question made me think about my dating life, but I stayed focused.
I chose a “Balanced” portfolio because choosing “Conservative” felt like admitting defeat, and “Aggressive” felt like something only people who confidently say “I invest in emerging markets” would pick. Balanced felt safe. Balanced felt like choosing medium salsa instead of mild or spicy — just enough flavour to feel brave, but not enough to cause regret.
Then came the scary part:
Funding my account.
My finger hovered over the “Deposit” button for a solid thirty seconds. You would’ve thought I was launching a missile the way my heart was beating. Eventually, I transferred an amount I was comfortable losing. Not that I wanted to lose it — but it was the amount that wouldn’t make me cry if something went wrong. Money showed up instantly, which shocked me more than it should have. I kept refreshing it like the number might disappear.
And then… there it was.
My first real moment of investing on Wealthsimple.
My money wasn’t just sitting around. It was doing something. Something adult.
I didn’t realize it then, but that moment — that tiny transfer — was the start of one of the biggest mindset shifts of my twenties.
The First Time My Portfolio Dropped $8 and I Nearly Fainted
For the first couple of weeks, things were going smoothly. Too smoothly.
Every morning, I checked the app and my portfolio was up:
+$0.32
+$1.04
+$2.17
It felt like getting tiny compliments from the universe. I didn’t know what I was doing, but Wealthsimple made me look competent. Life was good.
Then one day, I opened the app and saw a number in RED.
The most terrifying colour on Earth.
My portfolio: –$8.43.
I swear, I felt my soul leave my body for a second.
It wasn’t about the eight dollars. I’ve spent eight dollars on snacks I didn’t even like. It was the meaning of the eight dollars. The drama of watching something go DOWN for the first time. I immediately panicked. I paced. I googled. I considered calling someone, but who exactly does one call for an eight-dollar financial crisis?
My brain went into full disaster mode:
“What if this continues?”
“What if this turns into negative $80?”
“What if I’ve ruined my future?”
“What if I should’ve bought crypto instead?”
“What if my cousin was wrong and investing is actually a trap?”
But after twenty minutes of panic, I remembered something Wealthsimple had shown me in their articles:
“The market goes up and down. That’s normal.”
I hated how calm that sentence sounded in my panicked state. But something about it felt grounding. So I forced myself to do absolutely nothing. Not a thing. I didn’t sell. I didn’t “fix” it. I didn’t scream into the void. I just closed the app.
Two days later, my portfolio was up again.
My $8 crisis turned into a $6 gain.
And that’s when something clicked:
The problem wasn’t investing — the problem was my emotions.
Investing on Wealthsimple didn’t just teach me about ETFs.
It taught me patience.
It taught me that dips aren’t disasters.
And it taught me that sometimes the best financial decision is to chill out.
That $8 loss changed my entire relationship with investing.
Wealthsimple Trade, My Curious Era, and the Confidence I Didn’t Know I Needed
After a few months of using Wealthsimple Invest, I started getting curious about Wealthsimple Trade — the DIY side. I didn’t want to become one of those people with ten monitors and LED lights screaming “BUY BUY BUY,” but I did want to try buying a stock myself just once. So I downloaded Wealthsimple Trade expecting chaos. Instead, I found something simple and friendly — kind of like the older sibling who still remembers what it’s like to be young and confused.
My first buy? One single ETF share. Not glamorous, not risky, not Hollywood-level exciting. But it was mine. Something I chose. I loved the feeling of seeing it appear in my portfolio. It was like adopting a financial pet.
Over the next few weeks, I learned how to buy fractional shares, how FX fees work, and how to pace myself so I didn’t start YOLO’ing money into random companies just because they trended on Twitter once. Investing on Wealthsimple made me feel capable without overwhelming me, and that confidence spilled into other parts of my life. I started budgeting better. I saved more. I researched purchases instead of impulse buying. For the first time, I felt like I was actively shaping my future instead of just hoping everything worked out eventually.
The difference was subtle but powerful:
I didn’t just have money — I had a plan.
And that plan made me feel like someone future-me would actually be proud of.
The Long Game, the Lessons, and the Life I’m Building Because I Started Investing on Wealthsimple
Years into investing on Wealthsimple, I realized the biggest change wasn’t my portfolio — it was me. My mindset. My habits. My understanding of money. I no longer saw money as something that slips away. I saw it as something that can grow quietly, slowly, steadily. Something that can protect me. Something that can open doors. Something that supports future me even when present me is confused and figuring life out one coffee at a time.
I learned that investing isn’t about beating the market or acting like a financial guru. It’s about using what you have, consistently, to build something better. It’s about showing up for yourself in a way that compounds — not just in numbers, but in confidence. Wealthsimple made it possible for someone like me — someone who didn’t grow up with investment talk at the dinner table — to finally enter the world of building long-term wealth without shame, confusion, or fear.
If there’s one thing I now know for sure, it’s this:
My entire financial future shifted because I started investing on Wealthsimple.
Not because I was smart. Not because I knew what I was doing.
But because I started.
Because I dared to try.
Because I didn’t let an $8 loss scare me away.
That’s the funny thing about life — sometimes the smallest, most random moments end up changing everything.
For me, that moment was seeing my portfolio drop $8.
It scared me, humbled me, taught me patience, and pushed me to grow.
And honestly?
I wouldn’t trade that panic attack for anything.
It’s the reason I’m here today — building wealth slowly, steadily, and confidently — one automatic deposit at a time.
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