A Head of Wealth and Private Banking Shares Most Important Advice

This as-told-to essay is based on a conversation with Racquel Oden, US head of wealth and private banking at HSBC. It has been edited for length and clarity.
I’ve worked in global banking for HSBC, JPMorgan Chase & Co., Merril Lynch, and many more. Over the years, I’ve given my clients plenty of advice on saving, budgeting, investing, retirement, and financial planning.
When it comes to my family and friends, the most important financial advice I give them is to start putting away money as soon as possible.
You’re never too young to start saving or investing — and there are many things that even Generation Z could be doing now to help themselves reach their financial goals, whether that’s saving up for a down payment for a house, a dream trip abroad, a lavish wedding, or even an early retirement.
If you’re working, you should be focused on retirement and your personal savings
I know it sounds far away, but you should always be saving for retirement by paying into your 401(k).
Simultaneously, you should also be getting to the point where you have enough in your personal savings account to support your living expenses for the next six months in case you happen to lose your job for whatever reason. This money is what I call short-term cash on hand, what you can use to pay your basic needs — things like your apartment rent, car payments, grocery bills, etc.
You’re ready to invest once you have more than short-term cash on hand
I think for a lot of young investors, they’re unsure of when to start investing. We often think,