Wednesday August 3, 2005
Learn how to handle money through board game
By MICHELE LIAN
How do you handle business deals, pay cuts, share market crashes and even debts? A new board game enables you to sharpen your money sense from the safe confines of your home. MICHELE LIAN reports.
I was on a roll. I had just taken on a part-time job that would pump up my monthly pay cheque to RM7,600. But just as I was basking in my windfall, disaster struck: my boss had decided to downsize.
Thankfully, losing my job wasn’t on the cards, but I would have to take a monthly pay cut of RM300. I still had enough to fulfil my dream of owning my own property – I secured a loan to buy a four-unit commercial building for RM80,000.
Luck was on my side. Shortly after my purchase, I had an offer to sell the property for RM130,000, leaving me with a profit of RM40,000, minus taxes.
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In Smart Money, players are subjected to unpredictable forces that make or break their bank account. |
Each player has one goal: to accumulate enough wealth or passive income to render themselves early retirees or rich enough to buy their dreams.
This passive income, says Stephen Chin – one of the Malaysian businessmen who helped refine the game for local tastes – has to exceed the player’s cost of living, minus expenses, by at least RM20,000 a month.
A tall order for most of us, but not an impossible one to achieve, says Chin.
“It’s all about making your money work for you. “Investments make you on-going income whether you work or not. That’s passive income. This game puts the emphasis on developing that,” explains Chin, who also teaches personal and business finance for a living.
The game is not unlike Rich Dad, Poor Dad author Robert Kiyosaki’s Cashflow 101, but says Chin: “This is more realistic.”
Smart Money, he adds, is “like Monopoly, but for adults.”
The game originally started off as a hobby for a Hong Kong businessman whom Chin says prefers to remain anonymous. Because of his many commitments, the businessman decided not to develop it further.
One of Chin’s business partners picked up the idea where the businessman left off, and last September, the game was introduced to Malaysians.
Each player starts off by choosing from a range of professions that determine their start-off pay.
But, warns Chin, where you start off, be it at a nurse’s RM1,500 salary, or a medical specialist’s RM15,000, doesn’t always determine where you finish.
The players then roll the dice and enter a series of boxes called the Rut, where they are subjected to unpredictable forces that make or break their bank account – share market crashes, inflation, damaged property, pay rises, pay cuts, landing a huge business deal, unscrupulous business partners, even the unexpected arrival of a baby.
Opportunities – risky or not – arise, and players can choose to take up the challenge or turn it down. How they turn out is anybody’s guess.
“Luck does play a role in what sort of cards you draw, but a very small one.”
Going through hard times? Don’t throw in the towel just yet, advises Chin.
“You can still overcome situations if you make the right decisions. It’s all about understanding the numbers, planning the right strategies, recognising opportunities, diversifying, and knowing when to sell and when to hold.
“What we’ve found is that people who take risks make more returns than people who don’t. People who are scared to take risks keep whatever little they have, but never grow.”
Players lucky enough to land on the Find a Mentor box get to hobnob with the big shots and more importantly, are allowed to enter the Inner Circle, where they are able to find more business opportunities but face fewer risks with the help of their already successful mentor.
“The game doesn’t guide you,” says Chin. “It has its ups and downs just like real life. If the game has a facilitator or an experienced player, then they may give you advice on how to respond to the different situations.”
If you are squeamish about making major financial decisions, an educational game like this is a good place to start, says Chin. “It’s a safe environment where you can try out your own financial strategies to see if they’ll work in real life.
“This is a game that enables people to monitor their expenses and look at their debts more carefully.
“They’ll also be more open to opportunities when they come along. The most common reasons for turning them down are that they have no time, money, or that it’s too risky.”
What’s the worst that could happen?
“You could go bankrupt and be saddled with too much debt. It is very sobering when people learn the folly of spending or borrowing too much money, or taking too much risk.
“Some people think the share market is a good idea and they don’t have any qualms about going full on into it. This game will actually punish people who do that.”
And what if you play your cards (and strategies) right?
“You could make millions in nett worth or passive income, stop working and still live well.”
Smart Money is available at major MPH bookstores in the Klang Valley, Penang, Ipoh and Johor Baru, or from www.smartmoneyenterprise.com.
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