Financial Lessons From Makar Sankranti
Last Updated : Jan. 5, 2018, 11:55 a.m.
India is a country of festivals. Each festival has its own science and legend behind it. One such festival which is celebrated with great aplomb in North India is Makar Sankranti; which is also known as Pongal in Tamilnadu, Til-Gul in Maharashtra, Poush Sankranti in West Bengal and Bihu in Assam. This is the day when the sun shifts its course from Tropic of Cancer to tropic of Capricorn. The warmth in the air is apt to sow new seeds of crops and legumes after a wintry season.
As the auspicious day of Makar Sankranti closes in, we bring you some financial lessons that can be taken from the kite flying festival which also marks the beginning of the new harvest season.
Be prepared
In Makar Sankranti, it has been a long tradition of flying kites for a friendly banter in the sky. Before you approach the day with your arsenal of kites to soar high, a suitable preparation is needed. In the same manner it is quite pertinent that you prepare yourself well before making any sort of investment.
Eyes on goal
Just like when your kite has started soaring high in the sky, then it becomes more important to keep an eye on it. Similarly, when investment is done then the next phase begins, that is to constantly monitor the status of your investment. It’s only upon being vigilant towards your investment you can actually check for contingencies when its risky or plan to use the leverage when investment is risk free.
Flexibility is the key
You should always be prepared to make adjustments as the situation demands. It may seem sometimes that the investment you made may not be good. That is the moment to give time and wait out the deadlock which has created the tension in your mind. Many times it happens in investments like mutual funds that the funds which are not performing good at a point catches up on returns later as the time passes. In that case the people who stick to the situation will definitely get the reward of hefty returns as compared to those who bail out at the knack of any crisis.
Right protection
While flying the kite, you need to have your fingers covered with bandages and tapes so that you don’t get your finger cut . Similarly have all your insurance in place when making any investment. There is no harm in playing safe and cover the areas which are going to be affected the most.
Standing longer
The one who takes the pain is the one who gains ultimately. You stand the whole day flying kites, determined to make use of the day and deal with every kite in your kite’s way. Thus being an investor, be prepared to be there for a long time. Not every kite flies high. Some get cut while some get torn but the one which gives us immense pleasure is the one which flies high but for that you have to be prepared to lose some.
Striking a balance
Makar Sankranti marks the beginning of Indian summer. Which basically means, days become longer and the nights shorter. However, on the day of Makar Sankranti, day and night are of equal duration. If we think about it, managing our personal finance is all about striving to balance things out at all time. Availing credit should be planned and provisioned for in subsequent budgets. That way, one can completely avoid stressful situations wherein repayments are a problem; and delays and defaults the norm. This not only brings down the CIBIL score, but also causes an imbalance in overall financial management.