We live in a society where money rules everything around us. As college students, we don’t always think about saving, let alone investing our money. Erik Houston Jr. is a student a Morehouse College who has begun investing in the foreign exchange market with a few of his friends. HerCampus CAU caught up with him to learn about his experience and the foreign exchange market.
HC: What is your major and classification?
Erik: I’m a Sophomore and my major is Political Science.
HC: What do you hope to do with that?
Erik: With my political science degree, I want to be a corporate securities attorney. I also want to be a full-time entrepreneur and a full-time investor.
HC: So, you and a few of your friends have started investing in the foreign exchange market, what is the foreign exchange market for those who don’t know?
Erik: Basically, say you take a trip to somewhere like Jamaica and you buy something while you’re over there since Jamaican currency is worth less than American currency, where does the difference in that money go? That’s what the foreign exchange market is. Transactions like that happen so often that the foreign exchange market makes 5.3 trillion dollars a day. So, there’s a lot of money it. It is a little risky because you really have to be able to read the graphs and charts. One little mistake can blow your whole account if you are not careful.That’s where I’m at now. I’m really trying to study and gain a complete understanding of all the charts and graphs before I continue any further.
HC: How do you feel your peers could benefit from investing?
Erik: I feel like my peers can benefit because you finally get to see your money work for you. Yeah, we have had a 9 to 5 at some point in our lives. But, in the foreign exchange market, no one tells you what to do. You can wake up and you could’ve made 50 dollars overnight or 5,000 dollars. There’s no limit to the amount of money you can make. It’s all about how invested you are. It’s about how far you’re willing to go. It’s a beautiful thing to be your own boss.
HC: How did you go about getting started?
Erik: I got started because my roommate came in one day and told me he met a dude at the library who told him about making money from your phone or on your computer. He was talking about foreign exchange and trading currencies. You also get paid by the company to do it as well. It gets to the point where some people make 1.2 million dollars a month. There’s no limit to the amount of money you can make. I’m still in school, so I’m really trying to focus on school. I don’t need to be rich right now. Could I, if invested my time into it? Yeah, I probably could. But, I’m really here for my degree. I put more of my energy towards school, but I’m still involved.
HC: What is some advice you have for other college students who want to start investing their money?
Erik: Make sure you can handle it before anything. Your main priority is college. You’re here for your education. So, you have to make sure that that’s always your number one priority at all times. As long as you’re able to keep a balance and stay focused, then go ahead and give it a shot. You have to treat this just like your education because it takes financial literacy. You’re learning how to make your money grow and work for you. You don’t have anyone telling you what to do and that’s a lot of responsibility. A lot of people want that freedom, but when they get it they don’t know what to do with it. That’s how people end up losing money.
HC: In five years, where do you see yourself as an investor?
Erik: Five years from now I’ll be twenty-five. I see myself as a millionaire.
To learn more about Erik and investing you can find him on social media @erikholston_ on Instagram and @erik_holston on Twitter!