Welcome to Shubham Guides!

I did not start this blog because I had everything figured out. I started it because nobody warned me.

Nobody told me that earning in dollars does not automatically mean you are building wealth. Nobody explained what happens to your financial plans when your visa status changes overnight, or when your parents back in India need help and your savings are tied up in a 401(k) you cannot easily touch. Nobody talked about the specific, exhausting mental load of managing money across two countries, two tax systems, and two very different definitions of what financial security even means.

I am Shubham Arora. I have been investing my own money for over 10 years, starting back in India long before I ever landed in the US. That foundation matters because it means I understand both sides of this, the Indian financial mindset we grew up with, and the American system we are now trying to navigate. I have been living in the United States for 7 years as an Indian professional, and my day job has always been in analytics and decision-making, which means I think in numbers, tradeoffs, and long-term outcomes for a living. I try to bring that same clarity here.

But more than any of that, I am a husband and a father. My son changed how I think about money completely. It stopped being about hitting a number and started being about having enough time and enough calm to actually be present. That shift, from chasing wealth to designing a life worth living, is what this blog is really about.

ShubhamGuides covers personal finance, financial independence, and the real decisions Indian professionals face while living in the US or planning a return to India. I write about cost of living realities, investing across borders, H1B and L1 visa uncertainty, and the psychological weight that comes with building a future in a country that was never guaranteed to let you stay. Most personal finance advice was not written for us. This blog was.

Every post here is grounded in what I have actually done, not what sounds good on paper. I share what worked, what did not, and how my thinking has changed over time. I do not have perfect answers. But I can help you think more clearly about the ones that matter most to your situation.

If any part of this sounds familiar, you are in the right place.