Investment Advice for Gen Z: Focus on the Long Term, Not Just Following Trends

KOMPAS.com – Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Capital Group, Mike Gitlin, reminds young investors from Generation Z (Gen Z) not to get trapped in short-term investment patterns or simply following personal interests (hobby investing). He emphasises the importance of building wealth in the long term.

According to Gitlin, young investors should start viewing the financial markets as a means to build long-term wealth, not just as a playground for experimentation or following trends.

“Young investors must approach the market with a mindset of building long-term wealth, not just ‘hobby investing’,” he said, quoted from CNBC, Wednesday (22/4/2026).

An informal survey at his child’s school even showed that around 80 percent of Gen Z hold a similar view.

In response, Gitlin assesses that neither gold nor oil should be the primary instruments that young investors focus on when planning very long-term investments.

“Neither gold nor oil are places where they should be thinking about putting money for the next 75 years,” Gitlin said.

He added that trying to guess the right time to enter and exit commodity markets is very difficult, even for professional investors.

Instead, Gitlin suggests that young investors start building a “paper portfolio” or simulated portfolio containing a number of shares.

He also encourages them to conduct in-depth research (due diligence), including utilising artificial intelligence technology.

The main focus, he said, should be on company fundamentals, not short-term market fluctuations.

“Make them interested in shares and bonds, the broader macro conditions, and what is happening in the world,” he said.

Based on the World Economic Forum report titled Global Retail Investor Outlook, this generation’s trust in financial institutions has declined in the last two years.