The 3 Mistakes That Cost Me Years — Until I Committed to One Stock

Before I found my system, I was scattered. This is what it looked like before clarity — before conviction — before compounding.

I Didn’t Grow Up Around Money — I Grew Up Surviving

I didn’t grow up around wealth. I wasn’t taught how investing works. I wasn’t surrounded by people who owned stocks or talked about compound interest at the dinner table.

I was born in the Congo, raised in a refugee camp in Rwanda, and eventually made my way to the United States — not with a trust fund, but with trauma, survival instincts, and a deep hunger to build something better.

Money wasn’t a game to me. It was a lifeline. A way out. A way up.

But once I finally had a little income, I did what most people do: I started trying to invest.

And I messed it up.

Not because I was dumb. But because I didn’t have a system. I didn’t know what to ignore. I didn’t know how to stay focused.

I let the noise of the market, the hype of influencers, and the emotion of every dip and spike rob me of years I could’ve been compounding.

This post is about those three mistakes. And how everything changed once I committed to a single stock — and built a strategy I could finally stick to.

If you’re early in your journey, read this slowly. Every lesson here cost me time I’ll never get back. But if you absorb them, they might save you a decade.

Mistake #1: I Tried to Master Too Many Stocks at Once

I thought owning 20 or 30 tickers made me “diversified.”

I thought following 50 companies on TradingView made me “informed.”

I thought I was playing it smart by spreading out my bets.

But I wasn’t betting — I was drifting.

Every day, I would scroll through Reddit, bounce between finance YouTube videos, and chase alerts from Twitter. I’d react to every earnings call, try to catch dips I didn’t understand, and second-guess my moves within hours of making them.

What It Really Cost Me:

• Mental exhaustion from trying to track too many things

• No deep conviction in any single stock

• Weak hands when the market dropped — because I didn’t believe in what I held

• Decision fatigue that led to inaction

I was investing like a tourist — never staying long enough in one place to really understand it.

The Turning Point:

One day, I looked at my portfolio and realized I didn’t even remember why I bought half the things in it. I was spread thin, and worse — I wasn’t building anything that felt real.

That’s when I made the decision that changed everything: I would pick one company… and go deep.

Why I Chose MicroStrategy (MSTR)

MSTR isn’t just any company.

It’s the only public company with a Bitcoin strategy at its core.

I studied the CEO. I read the earnings reports. I tracked the balance sheet and Bitcoin holdings. I stopped trying to “catch the next thing” — and started building conviction in one thing.

Now, I buy $50 of MSTR every market day. That’s it.

Call it risky. Call it concentrated.

But I call it clarity.

I know what I’m holding.

I know why I’m buying it.

And I know how long I’m willing to hold it.

This one shift gave me back my peace of mind.

Mistake #2: I Invested Emotionally, Not Automatically

Before I committed to my MSTR challenge, my investing was entirely emotional.

If a stock dipped, I’d get scared and pull back.

If the market surged, I’d FOMO in and buy the top.

Every decision was driven by how I felt that day — not by any real strategy. I’d buy high, sell low, hesitate on dips, and then punish myself for missing gains.

The Emotional Rollercoaster Looked Like This:

• Wait for the perfect entry

• Miss it because of hesitation

• Jump in during a spike

• Watch it dip right after

• Panic and sell

• Vow to “do better”

• Repeat the same mistake

That wasn’t investing. That was gambling in slow motion.

How I Fixed It:

I removed myself from the equation.

I set up automated daily buys of $50 into MSTR on Robinhood — and I don’t touch it.

Whether it’s up 20% or down 30%, the buy happens.

No more trying to outsmart the market. No more trading on mood.

I replaced emotion with consistency.

And consistency is what compounds.

Mistake #3: I Thought More Information = Better Results

This one hurt the most — because it felt like I was doing the right thing.

I spent hours every day watching investing videos, listening to podcasts, scrolling through threads, and jumping between strategies.

I followed dividend investors, growth investors, crypto traders, options gurus, and real estate bros — all at once.

The problem? They all said different things.

One said buy the dip. Another said wait. One said index funds. Another said altcoins. One said diversify. Another said go all in.

I wasn’t getting smarter — I was getting stuck.

Every new opinion made me doubt what I already believed. Every new video made me think I was missing something.

The Truth:

You don’t need more data.

You need a system that works — and that you’ll actually follow.

The System That Finally Got Me Focused

I built a 3-platform system that I use every single day now.

It’s simple. It’s scalable. And most importantly — it works for me, because it removes emotion and builds consistency.

1. Robinhood — My Public Portfolio

This is where I automate $50/day into MSTR.

I show my share count publicly every Saturday on my blog. I track my progress. I don’t touch it. This is the foundation of my wealth-building challenge.

→ Try Robinhood

2. Webull — My Private Account

This is where I experiment.

If I want to buy a dip with a lump sum, explore an option strategy, or test something new — I do it here. It doesn’t interfere with my public challenge.

It keeps my system clean — and gives me space to play.

→ Get Webull

3. Acorns — My Behavior Trainer

Acorns rounds up my daily purchases and invests the spare change.

No, it won’t make me rich. But it builds discipline. It reminds me that wealth isn’t about size — it’s about repetition.

Every swipe funds my future.

→ Try Acorns

What I Tell Beginners Now (If I Could Go Back)

If I could talk to my younger self — or to anyone just starting — here’s what I’d say:

You don’t need to be perfect.

You just need to be consistent.

You don’t need to know everything.

You just need a system that runs without your emotions getting in the way.

You don’t need 50 different assets.

You need one you believe in deeply enough to hold through the noise.

Here’s a simple roadmap:

1. Start with one platform — Robinhood is easy and clean.

2. Pick one core asset — something you can study, understand, and believe in long-term.

3. Automate your buys — even $1/day builds the habit.

4. Use a second platform for experiments — like Webull, when you’re ready.

5. Train your brain with micro-investing — like Acorns.

That’s it.

Why I Still Don’t Diversify

People always ask me: “What if MSTR crashes?”

To which I respond:

“What if I never commit to anything, and I spend 10 years jumping from idea to idea with no real stake in anything?”

Diversification sounds safe. But in my case, it was a cover for indecision.

I’m not here to avoid volatility.

I’m here to build conviction.

Because conviction is the only thing strong enough to keep you going when the market tests you.

And it always will.

Proof Over Hype

I’m not writing this to sound smart. I’m not selling you a course or a dream.

I’m showing you the system I actually follow.

One that’s helping me build wealth — not on hype, but on proof.

I’m a bus driver. A former refugee.

I don’t have the pedigree.

I don’t have the connections.

But I have discipline.

And I have a 20-year plan I show the world every Saturday.

This is what it looks like before the world believes you.

You can wait for perfect.

You can chase what’s hot.

Or you can start stacking ownership now — and let time do the heavy lifting.

Final Thought

I used to chase everything.

Now I chase nothing — I build.

And the three mistakes I made?

They weren’t failures. They were tuition.

They’re why I’m so focused now.

You don’t need a perfect portfolio to build real wealth.

You just need:

• A system you can trust

• A schedule you can stick to

• And a reason that keeps you consistent

That’s how you win this game.

One share at a time.

Want to skip the mistakes I made? Start building your own system today — even if you’re starting from scratch.

→ How to Build Wealth with Just $1 a Day

Read Next:

• Why I Use 3 Investing Platforms (And What Each One Is For)

• How to get rich by Investing: 8 steps for Any Age

• The Only 3 Accounts You Need to Build Wealth from Scratch