For me, one of the advantages of being at home a bit more in 2020 has been a process of rediscovery. I’ve found that with a little more time on my hands I’ve been able to spend a bit more time doing things I once loved but in recent years have forgotten about. The pastime which has been reignited the most in recent months has been my love of Chess.

My dad taught me how to play Chess originally. We used to spend hours huddled over the chess board. When we first started playing I lost every game, and then I started to win the odd one. Then I started to win more than lose…until I reached a stage where I’d improved to a level where I’d win most games. We stopped playing in the end…I was a teenager at the time and interested in other things, and to be frank I think my Dad wasn’t as keen on the game as he once was.

I played the odd match with friends over the years and dabbled with joining a chess club once or twice, but never really reengaged with playing on a regular basis. Until 2020. Now I’m playing a few matches a day online every day.

I don’t know about you but every so often I get reminded of important things when I’m involved in something new. Lessons I seem to forget but then relearn when participating in a new pastime. Lessons which apply to all of our lives, and in particular our financial plans…

Here’s what playing a lot more chess recently has reminded me about financial planning…

There’s a fine balance between defense and attack.

If you’re too aggressive, or too passive in Chess it tends not to work out particularly well for you. Too much aggression means too much risk which can leave yourself potentially liable to attack. Too much defense and you paint yourself into a corner unable to take the action you need in the future.

The right approach as always is balance depending on your own particular playstyle. Some individuals are happy with a more action oriented attack focused game, others prefer a slant towards being a little more protective of their pieces.

However the important thing is there needs to be an understanding of the risks you take when playing chess and the potential rewards this approach might provide…much like when you’re building your financial plan

You might have the best plan in the world…but ‘life’ sometimes gets in the way.

One of the most frustrating things when I play Chess is my opponent. 

You see I might have an idea of the perfect trap to pinch a piece, checkmate in a handful of moves or a vision of where I want to be strategically…but my pesky opponent has different plans!

That’s when I need to think on my feet and amend my plan to reflect my opponent.

It’s the same thing when you build your financial plan. You have goals, hopes, dreams and aspirations but these things never exist in a vacuum. 

Whilst in life we don’t have opponents, life does get in the way and sometimes our plan needs to change. This is when we should be thinking about the action we need to take to ensure that our success, however this looks for you, is back on track….much like when maintaining your financial plan.

The key is focus…and practice.

I realised initially that through lack of practice and focus over the years my chess skill had deteriorated significantly. I was making rookie mistakes again and needed to practice and relearn to get a bit better. I lost a few times and found it frustrating. I almost gave up a few times…but persevered. I gradually got better again and could ‘see’ what moves to make next.

Often when we work with clients they’ve built up a level of wealth but can’t ‘see’ how what they’ve got relates to their own life goals. Sometimes this take practice, other times it takes an expert to show you the way.

However the more you focus on building your core ‘chess game’ and focus on maintaining your skills through regularly playing chess the more likely you’re going to be able to see the way forward, and you know what’s coming…Much like when building and maintaining your financial plan

Emotion plays a part…but logic (and getting help when you need it is important)

It’s interesting to think of Chess as an emotional game, and you might be different, but I genuinely get disappointed when I lose, Tense when I’m running out of time and Excited when I make a couple of good moves.

However I’ve also learned to recognised the need to take a breath, not overeact and make moves to emotional and focus on the longer term strategy using logic.

As Humans we’re driven by our emotions. There’s no denying that but it’s also important to take a breath and work out what might be the most logical move and if we’re not sure getting proper professional advice from someone who can help. I’ve certainly benefited from Youtube videos highlighting what masters of the game would do…

So, in Chess staying logical, getting help when you need it and taking a breath at the right times is important…and I’m going to say it for the last time, much like building, maintaining and getting help when you need to, with your financial plan.

Sometimes it’s nice to have a reminder that the principles we apply in our profession apply in many other aspects of our life. From building a business to building a clear financial plan…

….to playing a game of chess.

So, how’s your chess game? and (more importantly!) How clear is you (or your clients) financial plans?

As always feel free to give me a call if I can help you or someone you know…