BY MIRRIAM MBEWE

When I first heard Napoleon Hill’s famous quote, “Whatever your mind can conceive and believe, it can achieve,” I embraced it as a guiding principle. It shaped my values until earlier this year, when my perspective broadened in the most unexpected way—through chess.

At NICO Asset Managers, we decided to host an employee chess tournament. As a sponsor of Chess Association of Malawi (CHESSAM) tournaments, it was a chance for us to truly engage with the game. There was just one problem—I had never played chess before. I considered learning, but instead, I made a different choice: I accepted defeat before I even began.

The tournament came and went, and I didn’t play a single match. Yet, something about the game lingered in my mind I could not let the game go. Slowly, I began learning its principles. What surprised me was how profoundly chess parallels investments, especially that critical first step to always START SMART by always defining and prioritizing your goals.

A couple of years ago, my colleague shared a series of articles on our five-step goal-based investment management process. As I learnt the game of chess, I was inspired by and motivated to share with you some investment tips using my chess experience. Chess and investments are truly intertwined. To get the full picture, I invite you to follow the full series to the end.

The Opening Game In chess, your first move sets the tone. As White, you have 20 legal moves at the start. Without understanding your options, you will freeze, unsure where to begin. Investing is no different. Many people hesitate at the thought of investing, overwhelmed by choices. But knowledge is power. Learning the basics of investing—just as I learned the fundamentals of chess—is the first step.

Strategic openings in both chess and investments often require guidance. Chess players consult coaches to refine their strategy; investors should do the same by seeking advice from financial advisors. At NICO Asset Managers, our advisors are ready to tailor plans to your financial goals and timelines.

Protecting Your King In chess, the King is your most important piece. Lose it, and the game is over. In investing, your “King” is your ultimate goal—whether it’s securing your children’s education, retiring

comfortably, or retiring early. It’s vital to identify and protect this goal by aligning your investments toward it.

Investments can be segmented into short-term (up to 1 year), medium-term (2–5 years), and long-term (5+ years). Starting with as little as 100,000, you can begin building your portfolio today. We categorize your goals according to your investment time-frame in order to align with the appropriate investment avenues. Similarly, investment avenues appropriate to your goals may be short-term (e.g. Fixed Deposits and Treasury Bills), medium-term (Treasury Notes and bonds) or long-term (Treasury Bond and shares).

A Real-Life Example A client nearing retirement once approached me in distress. She worried it was too late to start investing. Together, we built a plan focused on generating monthly income while preserving her principal. Off her pension, we structured a portfolio that provides K1,300,000 monthly. Her response? “I’m late to the party, but I’m glad I caught the bus.”

My client was very apprehensive at the beginning. With good coaching however, I have seen her become comfortable up to the point of robustly discussing her investment portfolio with me – even to the point of suggesting investment strategies. She is now fully immersed in the investment game. I have also observed how she remains focused on protecting her “king.” She wants to remain financially secure throughout her retirement.

In our previous coverage of investment education articles, we shared the journey to achieving financial goals using a simple yet powerful 5-step goals-based process. This begins with defining and prioritizing your goals, followed by understanding yourself as an investor—a crucial step that shapes the development of a personalized investment strategy as concluded in this article. These three crucial steps just like in the game of chess enforce a powerful build up of the game.

Allow me to borrow our famous quote around NICO Asset Managers: The best time to start investing? Yesterday. The second-best time? Today. This echoes to the wisdom of Napoleon Hill: “Whatever your mind can conceive and believe, it can achieve.”