In order to make the choice between advisory or discretionary investments, your financial advisor will usually ask you what your preference is and what would most suit your personality. In other words: Do you prefer to handle everything by yourself, make your own choices, or do you prefer a professional do it for you?
If you’re a more hands-on person who prefers to stay in control, you may want to manage the day-to-day of your investments yourself.
However, what do you do when you’re on vacation, or even worse when an unexpected economic crisis hits the world overnight?
The post-pandemic world
Imagine waking up one morning, drinking your coffee, and enjoying life. You take a look at the news and are hit with the realization that a pandemic is heading your way, that there might be a lockdown, and that an economic crisis is probably about to sweep across the world. What do you do?
Today, most people have gotten used to living in the pandemic world, where another lockdown could always happen and where the next market crash is a possibility. But two years ago, the story was a lot different.
We often say that financial markets are afraid of uncertainty, and this has been proven. When Asia, then Europe, and finally America went into lockdown, markets everywhere were severely hit. The Morningstar US Market Index fell about 35% in 33 days but then quickly recovered the following weeks and new highs were set just a few months later.
This was also a period of great uncertainty and anxiety. News of crashes and recovery would alternate from one day to the next, making it hard for many investors to separate emotions from their financial decisions while also making decisions at the right time.
What does this have to do with you enjoying your vacation?
If you’re a hands-on type of person, you may have felt a tightening in your chest right about now. Would you have the time or mental space to take on these issues and find good solutions? We’re still in the middle of a global health crisis and we already have our health, job, and families to worry about. There may not be enough room left to even consider wealth management issues.
The same is true when you go on vacation. For example, I’m the type of person who wants to manage their investment by themselves. However, when I go on vacation, I’ll be in my hometown, spending time with friends and family, or backpacking somewhere around the world; all of which allow me to completely disconnect, at least for a little while, from my real life. So, when I’m on vacation, I don’t want to think about my investments and manage them, even if I’m passionate about them.
Instead of asking ourselves whether we prefer staying in control or delegating it, shouldn’t the question be: Do you always want to be connected?
This is where the alternative comes in. Through managed solutions, your financial advisor will have the freedom to make decisions on your behalf and mitigate the added stress of wealth management in your life. Of course, you will still be involved with the initial framework and the strategy, and your advisor will always have to respect your wishes.
But of course, as with every choice, you’re bound to give up something. If you choose to go with managed solutions, then you’ll have to accept having less control over your investments.
So, what’s the solution?
Instead of asking ourselves whether we prefer staying in control or delegating it, shouldn’t the question be: Do you always want to be connected? If you decide to handle everything by yourself – to use advisory solutions – there is no real disconnection, no time off. For many of us, the pandemic has changed our way of looking at life: nowadays, more people want free time to spend with their loved ones or with themselves. People have rediscovered that time, especially free time is one of the most valuable commodities in life. One that is finite.
There is no one-size-fits-all answer to this problem. Personally, I prefer to be hands-off when I go on vacation. Peace of mind and the possibility to disconnect is, in the end, more important to me.
What about you?
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