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Life’s Financial Chessboard

A considered opinion about financial simplicity

Nowadays, the sections of our community with the loudest voices, be it government, big business or media, tend to dictate our perspective.

As a youngster I regarded my Dad as the fountain of all knowledge and would go to him to ask for his insights on many different matters. Later in life, I became the first in generations of my family to actually buy my house and call it my home. When it came to selling the house, I called my Dad in Scotland to explain my emotion about selling it. He quickly explained that a house is “just bricks and mortar” and I immediately understood what home really is.

Perception and perspective in life is everything. With the development of big government, big business and opinionated media with the internet as the powerhouse, it is much easier nowadays to be misled and to lose perspective.

Life as a chessboard

I wish life was more like a draught board but unfortunately it is just more complicated than that. We all make decisions and usually it’s only time that can prove which decision was right or wrong. My oldest brother once told me what he hated about my personality is that I know what I want, and how to get it. I realised he was not really talking about me but he was actually saying something about his life which brought him endless frustration.

After studying life and people for almost seven decades, I find that many and maybe most people need help to move their life along. They need some explanation about the chessboard of life and what their perspective should be. Someone once said to me “use it or lose it”. A phrase that applies very much to everyone’s individual super asset as it is apparent that many major bodies have an axe to grind against your super asset.

Super is made to appear complicated but it is indeed the simplest of wealth creation strategies.

As a superannuation consultant and adviser, I am responsible for providing financial wisdom to my client base in helping them to understand what they should want and how they can gain from their activity which might optimize their super asset.

Life is a very busy and complicated game and, quite simply, time does fly. Too many people start paying attention to their super too late in life with the cost of such inactivity being rather expensive.

So what to do?

There are decisions to be made as soon as you think that you should do something about your super. The first easy decision to be made is to have a discussion with someone who understands super better that you do. In essence, make an appointment with your adviser.

The AXIS adviser will explain the consequences of what you are doing now and the range of decisions that you could make to have your super perform much better. There are not too many decisions to be made but all of them require a level of technical knowledge normally beyond most people’s capability:

o The first is the choice of product and its functionality

o The second is the cost structure of that product relative to other options

o Then you should consider your contribution strategy

o Finally you have to establish your investment strategy and then understand how markets work

In considering all of the above, you need to know where you want to be at the point of retirement but you also need to understand how you can monitor progress in the short term against your long term goal.

The above is a simple framework around a set of decisions needing dependable technical expertise but it is set up in such a way that you have your own insight into the results.

In short, the AXIS advisory process takes one of the boxes involved with the chessboard of life and reduces the moves to simplicity such that the risk of failure is very much reduced.

This document was prepared and issued by AXIS Financial Group (ABN 21 092 889 579, AFSL 233680). The information contained within it is not advice. It provides general information only and does not take into account your individual objectives, financial situation or needs. You should assess whether the information is appropriate for you and consider talking with your financial adviser before making an investment decision. Information in this publication, which is taken from sources other than AXIS Financial Group, is believed to be accurate. However, subject to any contrary provision in any applicable law, neither AXIS Financial Group, nor its employees and directors, provide any warranty of accuracy or reliability in relation to such information or accepts any liability to any person who relies on it.

Let’s talk about the right super fit for your employees.

Mitsui & Co. (Australia) Ltd engaged AXIS Financial Group in reviewing the existing employer super arrangements and clarifying which product provider might be best for Mitsui & Co. (Australia) Ltd and it’s group of companies.

AXIS Financial Group provided a concise explanation as to who might be best and why, in particular ensuring that the internal project team had the information to feel confident as decisions were made. The project team moved from arguably being daunted by the prospect of improving this particular employer funded employee entitlement and better understood how to manage super as a remuneration benefit through the detailed analysis and explanation provided by AXIS Financial Group

Antony Auliso
General Manager - Human Resources Division
Mitsui & Co. (Australia) Ltd

I want to thank AXIS Financial Group for their efforts in handling insurance claims on behalf of the employees of WesTrac. From the moment AXIS Financial Group were appointed to the task, they moved so seamlessly into position and have made sure that WesTrac is not only better serviced as a result but also more informed about claims progress. I also note the outstanding results achieved by AXIS with respect to marketing and placement of our employer super policy.

It seems nothing is a problem for the AXIS team and I would commend all employers to consider this service.

Gary Carter
Group Insurance Manager
WesTrac Pty Ltd

AXIS Financial Group’s knowledge of employer super is second to none.

DXC tasked AXIS Financial Group with consolidating multiple superannuation funds to a
single company-wide default fund. They delivered, displaying superior knowledge of their
industry, along with the highest level of service and diligence.
From start to finish – the initial analysis of our previous funds, the detailed tender process,
the transition to our new fund, and post-transition – AXIS Financial Group always made
themselves available for support.
We strongly recommend speaking to AXIS Financial Group for all matters relating to
employer super.

Michael McGoldrick
Director, Compensation Asia Pacific
DXC Technology