From F&O losses to four goal portfolios: a Freefincal reader’s reset

Freefincal recently published a reader story by Rakesh Gan, and we think it captures a pattern many Indian investors will recognise. Gan describes moving from an MBA and a corporate salary in 2013 into simple recurring deposits, then into random cash-market bets, losses in Futures & Options, and ad-hoc mutual fund investments. The reason it matters is not the specific portfolio but the shift: from market noise to purpose-led allocation. (Source: Freefincal)

What happened

According to the Freefincal account, Gan started with recurring deposits after his 2013 MBA. He soon drifted into stock trading, with a chaotic mix of cash market bets, F&O losses, and mutual fund purchases made without clear goals or direction. In 2019, after discovering Freefincal and taking the goal-based investing course, he rebuilt his approach. During the COVID-19 crash he used the sharp dip to build and lock in his target asset allocation rather than panic. The portfolio now runs around four goals: Retirement, Child’s Education, Emergency Fund, and Leisure. As of November 1, 2026, reported XIRR figures reflect returns since each goal’s start date and account for rebalancing whenever an asset class moved more than 2-3% from target. (Source: Freefincal)

Our analysis

The underlying mechanism here is behavioural, not just financial. Random cash-market and F&O activity creates adrenaline and constant decision pressure. Goal-based investing flips the focus to a future cash need, so an investor is more likely to treat a market fall as an allocation opportunity rather than a threat. In Gan’s story, the COVID-19 dip became the moment to build positions, because the target allocation had already been decided. (Source: Freefincal)

We also note the role of explicit rebalancing rules. When an asset class deviates more than 2-3% from target, the investor is forced to sell what has run up and buy what has lagged. That is a disciplined way to buy low and sell high without needing to forecast markets. It works only if the investor can stick with the process through volatile periods; the story highlights that sticking with the system mattered more than calling the bottom. (Source: Freefincal)

Another signal is the plan to reduce risky asset allocation as the goal date nears. That is a standard lifecycle idea: a child’s education corpus needed in a few years should not sit in the same risk profile as a retirement fund decades away. In the Freefincal account, each of the four goals appears to carry its own timeline and risk budget, which is a cleaner mental model than one blended portfolio.

What this could mean for you

• Young earners who just started with recurring deposits: This story shows the common drift into direct stock trading and F&O can be replaced by goal-linked investing without needing extraordinary market skill.
• Speculative traders facing repeated losses: The turning point described is not a better trading strategy but a different structure, where allocating to goals reduces random buy and sell pressure.
• Mutual fund investors with ad-hoc portfolios: If each investment is tied to a goal, it becomes easier to avoid pulling money out for unrelated reasons and easier to rebalance when allocation drifts 2-3%. (Source: Freefincal)
• Parents and retirement savers: A multi-goal setup allows separate risk levels: an emergency fund can stay liquid, while education and retirement portfolios can take different equity exposure depending on when the money is needed.

What to watch next

• Whether rebalancing triggers are documented in writing, so future market falls or rallies do not reopen old speculative habits.
• How the reported plan to shift from risky assets to fixed income near each goal date is actually implemented in the account.
• If the four-goal structure is maintained during the next market correction, which will test whether the behaviour change is durable.

Bottom line

Our read is that the Freefincal reader story is less about specific returns and more about reducing randomness through goal labels, allocation targets, and rebalancing rules. It is an investor-education example of how behaviour can change when investing is organised around purpose rather than short-term market moves.