Make the smart money moves early: self-taught finfluencer Joyee Yang

Who are your money, finance and investing heroes?

My number-one investing hero has to be Brandon Beavis. His YouTube videos taught me everything I know about investing. My money hero is Adrian Bar, Canadian in a T-Shirt on YouTube. He taught me how to optimize taxes and keep more money in my pocket. Third, my finance hero is Maxwell Nicholson, the CEO of Blossom. He built an app that shows you what your favourite influencers and friends are investing in, and transparency is truly what Gen Z needs nowadays. 

How do you like to spend your free time? 

Free time is such a luxury for me. While working two to three jobs from the ages of 19 to 25, I never had free time. I’ve been self-employed for six months now, and I’ve been travelling a lot recently. I also love going on solo dates, taking myself out for breakfasts, dinners, spa treatments and window shopping. 

If money were no object, what would you be doing right now?

I would definitely be travelling and doing all the excursions, like swimming with dolphins, scuba diving, ziplining, paragliding and so on. 

What was your first memory about money?

Buying snacks at the grocery store. I learned that money allows me to purchase items that I want.

What’s the first thing you remember buying with your own money?

The first thing I bought with my first paycheque was a silver ring at Swarovski. I wanted to buy something that would remind me of my independence and something that would never go out of style. 

What was your first job? 

I got my first job at age 16, as a sales associate at Old Navy. 

What was the biggest money lesson you learned as an adult? 

The biggest money lesson I learned was the importance of putting every single dollar of mine to work. I wish I’d researched all the available investment vehicles, like high-interest savings accounts, the stock market and GICs, when I was 19. I missed out on potential gains because I was unaware that such investment vehicles exist. It was important for me to go through that, because now I love exploring more ways to put my money to work, and now I have a platform to share my findings.

What’s the best money advice you’ve ever received?

Buy assets, not liabilities.