The fact that you have to wait until you earn much before you invest is a bad move in my opinion.
One can start small even if it's 5% or 10%. If the money is put into an interest -generating account, then, the magic of compounding will be your reward.
So there isn't a good or bad time to start. Start as soon as you start earning. It will multiply. But then you must do your due diligence before you invest in anything.... why? This is because there are scams everywhere and with the rise of cryptocurrency, there's a popular one.
What's the name?
Pump and dump scams. These are one of the most common types of fraud in the cryptocurrency market. Pump-and-dump scams are a type of fraud that involves artificially inflating the price of an owned asset before dumping it to make a quick profit.
Source
Pumping is the act of buying shares and then promoting them to others with false or misleading statements, while dumping is the act of selling shares after they have been bought by others at an inflated price due to one's efforts. These days a lot of it is happening in the crypto space.
The scammer will purchase large quantities of a low-priced token, then spread false or misleading information about it to create interest and increase demand. This causes the price of the token to rise, which they sell at a higher price for profit.
Why do people fall for these scams?
Pump-and-dump scams are illegal and unethical schemes that are very common in the cryptocurrency market. And people fall victim to them because they already feel crypto is a money-doubling Industry. Of course, this is completely false, crypto is only here to change the narrative around our finances not to double our money in a twinkle of an eye.
How can you protect yourself?
No one can guarantee that they will not fall victim to these scams. The best way to avoid pump and dump scams is by educating oneself on how these scams work.
Another way is not to invest in something that you don't understand. This will ensure that you don't fall for any tricks or schemes that are being used by scammers who want your money.
Contact a financial advisor and ask questions about certain investment opportunities before you dip your feet in. At the same time, be cautious over investment portfolios that seem to be in a hurry. You need time to evaluate and research that investment before you invest.
Finally, if you find out anything suspicious about an investment opportunity, do well to report it to the necessary authorities. This will go a long way to save other people from mistakenly getting scammed of their earned money.