5 Personal Finance Lessons From Olympics

The Olympics teaches us many valuable life lessons such as dreaming big, planning, determination, hard work, and not giving up. Admit it. The moment Neeraj Chopra climbed on the podium at the Tokyo Olympic Games to receive his javelin gold medal and the Indian national anthem played in the background, you got goosebumps. The other Indian medallists also made the country proud. 


Start early: The earlier you start as a sportsperson, the more practice and experience you have. The Olympics teaches us many valuable life lessons such as dreaming big, planning, determination, hard work and not giving up. But are there personal finance lessons we can learn from the Olympics? We surely can. Here are five. 


“Likewise, starting early has its unique advantage of time wisdom if you are investing to build wealth,” says Ashish Bhave, money and life freedom coach. Starting early also helps one reap the benefits of the magic of the power of compounding. The longer the money stays invested, the better it grows.


P.V. Sindhu started playing badminton at the age of eight and joined Pullela Gopichand’s badminton academy. She won the fifth Servo All India ranking championship (doubles), and the singles title at the Ambuja Cement All India ranking in the under-10 category before moving on to the big league.


Know where you stand: A sportsperson constantly needs to assess himself or herself. It helps them know their strengths and weaknesses and areas they need to improve in.


At the 2016 Rio Olympics, Mirabai Chanu failed to lift her weights in any of her three clean and jerk attempts. This was a big disappointment for her. But she took the opportunity to assess herself, which made her realize she was not doing enough to win an Olympic medal. This made her change her training regimen and improve on her weaknesses on her way to the silver medal in Tokyo 2020.


“When it comes to personal finance also, you need to analyse your current financial position, how much money and assets you have at present, how much are your expenses, what is your investible surplus before you make any investment decision,” says Bhave.


Set clear goals: Allyson Felix, who won her 11th Olympic medal in Tokyo 2020 and claimed her spot as the most decorated track and field American athlete, has said: “If you have a long-term goal, break it down. Write your goals down, including what you need to do to accomplish them.”


Think long-term: An Olympic medal requires years of hard work and long-term planning. Ravi Kumar Dahiya’s journey to the silver medal at Tokyo 2020 is a case in point. He broke through to the world stage when he won the silver medal at the 2015 Junior World Championship. He then won a silver medal at the 2018 under-23 Wrestling Championships. After winning a bronze in his debut World Championships in 2019, he qualified for Tokyo Olympics.


A similar strategy is very effective when it comes to managing your finances. It is very important to clearly define one’s short-term, medium-term and long-term goals. Once the goals are defined, one can plan for them.


“We have to keep patience while facing volatility in our investments and retain our faith that in the long-term, we will overcome the volatility and achieve our goals,” says Hemant Beniwal, director, Ark Primary Advisors.


Get professional help: In any sport, proper training and guidance is a must. Athletes have a set of people around them for that purpose, which include coaches and other professionals. Likewise, when it comes to your personal finance, you need the help of an expert. A financial adviser can take a holistic view of your finances and help you achieve your financial goals.


Source / Credits / Reference : Mint

Ref URL : https://www.livemint.com/money/personal-finance/5-personal-finance-lessons-from-olympics-11629054681643.html


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