Don’t use credit cards like this!

If financial planning seems to be overwhelming for you, you can try and use cricketing analogies to help you boost your finances. In cricket, the win depends on teamwork. If only batting is kept in mind, defending the target would be a blunder. If you want to save the opposite team from scoring big runs, fielding is also important. We just can’t keep only batsmen or only bowlers in the team. There must be a balance. A mix of batsmen, bowlers, all rounders and a wicketkeeper. This is the main ingredient of your financial portfolio – Balance. 

First of all, understand who is the opposition to your financial planning 

These are the things that can disrupt your financial planning. It can be high inflation or a black swan event like coronavirus or a medical emergency. Higher inflation means the rival team is scoring big and now your team needs to work harder and make a bigger score to survive. Don’t let any medical emergency shatter your wickets, choose a player that can stay on the pitch for a long time.

Make the best use of Powerplay

When young professionals begin their careers, it is just like the Powerplay. Generally, there aren’t many responsibilities on their shoulders, there is a long future to invest and take risks as compared to a middle aged person. It means this is the right time to go on the front foot and play big shots. If you plan at an early age, there will be less pressure in death overs or we can say that good financial planning will help you win the match without playing final overs – You can retire comfortably before the age of 60.

Consider your bonus as the Powerplay. Use this Powerplay judiciously to fetch the win with ease.

Choosing players

Your financial portfolio should have the players like equity which can give the best returns. Bowlers like debt option and gold which can reduce the risk and save runs when needed. There must be safe investments such as a fixed deposit in your team which won’t fail ever. Fielders like insurance which can protect you in any kind of emergency.

Your twelfth man is an emergency fund, which can replace any player at the time of need.

Different match, different planning

Understand short, medium and long term planning such as T20, ODI and Test matches. Pankaj Mathpal from Optima Money Managers suggests when playing in the long term, you can do 80% investment in equity and 20% in debt. In the medium term, you can have a 50-50 balance between equity and debt whereas in the short term keep only 20-30% in equity and rest in debt.

In life, we hardly get any free-hits but we just can’t keep waiting for one. So, when you get time after making your team on an online fantasy platform, prepare your financial portfolio team and watch how this team scores big.