(This column was first published on Value Research India.)

Earlier this week, when the Nifty breached the 8,000 mark, I realised that I remember a time when the Sensex was at 8,000. Today, the Sensex is hovering around 27,000. On first realisation, this made me feel old. But thankfully, that’s not really the case. The difference between 8,000 points and 27,000 is massive, but the time gap between these two milestones is relatively less big. It’s not that I’ve aged a lot between these two numbers; it’s just that the Sensex has zoomed ahead very quickly. Phew!

That said, my youth restored, it really is amazing how our key indices have journeyed from one milestone to another, especially in the last year or so. The 3-4 years before the announcement of our current PM as the PM-elect last September were pretty stagnant. And most of this rise since then can be attributed more to positive sentiments than meaningful practices. The latter, of course, are expected to come. And the markets are pretty confident that they will.

What about you? Are you positive about the positive sentiments getting converted into meaningful actions? Or are you sceptical about the performance of the new government? Either way, no matter which boat you’re in, if you’re waiting for a concrete sign to start investing, waiting is the only thing you’ll ever be doing.

It has been said time and again that there no “right” time to invest in equities. Any time is a good time for someone who’s looking to build wealth over the long-term. The markets could be at a high right now, maybe they’ll go up from here or maybe there will be a correction, no one can tell. You shouldn’t be worrying about the market’s movements anyway. You should be investing regularly, not in lump sum, and for the long-term. And you should be starting your SIPs now.