DIY Investor's Risk Profiling Toolkit
A structured self-audit for Indian investors who manage their own money.
Most online risk profilers ask five questions and give you a label. This one asks twenty-eight — across three dimensions that should never have been collapsed into one number.
Download it free. Take it seriously.
Risk is not one thing.
Whether your finances can absorb a loss is a different question from whether your behaviour will absorb one. And both depend on whether you understand what you own well enough to hold it when things get uncomfortable.
The toolkit measures all three — separately.
CAPACITY (out of 50)
What your financial structure can actually absorb. Emergency fund, income stability, debt, insurance, dependents. Mostly factual. Slow to change.
TOLERANCE (out of 50)
What your behaviour shows you can absorb. Anchored to what you actually did in past market events, not what you think you would do. Provisional until tested by a real drawdown.
KNOWLEDGE (out of 40)
How reliable the other two scores are. If you do not understand what you own, your Capacity and Tolerance answers are less meaningful than they appear.
At the end you get three scores, a report, a binding constraint identification, instrument category guidance, behavioural bias flags keyed to your specific answers, a goal map, an investment inventory audit, and an annual tracker.
No fund names. No product recommendation. No AMC behind it.
One Excel file. Yours to keep. Retake every year.
FAQs
Who is this for?
Anyone managing their own investments in India who wants an honest picture of where they actually stand — not a label assigned by a tool built to sell them something. It works equally well for someone just starting out and someone who has been investing for ten years.
What do I need to use it?
Microsoft Excel 2016 or later, or Excel for Mac. Google Sheets can open the file but the dropdown validation may not work as intended. Set aside 60 to 90 minutes for your first session. Have your bank statements, insurance documents, and current investment holdings in front of you before you start.
Why is it free?
I am building toward SEBI RIA registration. This toolkit is the clearest demonstration I have of how I think about risk. If you find it useful, you already have a sense of whether my approach to these questions matches yours.
Is my data safe?
Everything stays on your device. Nothing is transmitted, stored, or shared anywhere. The file has no internet connection and no tracking.
Can I share it with someone else?
The file is licensed for personal use by the individual who downloads it. Please do not forward the file itself. If someone you know would find it useful, send them the link to this page instead.
What happens after I download it?
Can I share it with someone else?
No. The questions are written in plain language. Each question has a guidance note explaining what it measures and why. The Knowledge dimension will show you what gaps exist — that is part of the point.
You will receive a short email series over the next few weeks with notes on how to read your scores and what to do with them. When I register as a fee-only adviser, I will send you one email about it. That is all.
Last updated: June 2026
1. Educational purpose only: This toolkit is designed for financial education and personal self-awareness. It is not investment advice, financial planning advice, portfolio management advice, or a suitability assessment. It does not constitute advice as defined under the SEBI (Investment Advisers) Regulations, 2013, or any other securities law in India or elsewhere.
2. No product recommendation No mutual fund, stock, bond, insurance product, or any other financial instrument is recommended anywhere in this toolkit. Instrument categories described in the output are descriptive and general in nature. They do not constitute a recommendation to buy, sell, or hold any specific security or financial product.
3. Not a substitute for professional advice The scores and report produced by this toolkit are based entirely on your self-reported answers. They reflect your current understanding and recall of your own financial situation and behaviour. Always consult a SEBI-registered, fee-only investment adviser before making any significant investment decision. This toolkit identifies patterns in your profile. A qualified adviser interprets those patterns in the context of your complete financial picture.
4. Accuracy depends on honest answers The toolkit cannot verify, validate, or correct the information you provide. An inaccurate or aspirational answer produces a misleading score. The output is only as reliable as the honesty with which the questions are answered.
5. No guarantee of future behaviour Scores reflect your profile at the time of assessment. They are not a prediction of future behaviour, particularly under market conditions you have not yet experienced. Risk profiles change. Reassess annually and after every significant life event.
6. Personal use licence This file is licensed for personal use by the individual who downloads it. Redistribution, resale, or forwarding of the file is not permitted. If someone you know would like access, please direct them to this page.
7. No warranties This toolkit is provided as-is. While every effort has been made to ensure the accuracy of the questions, scoring logic, and output, no warranty is made regarding fitness for any particular purpose.
© 2026 Sneha Rege. All rights reserved.