The new season of Game of Thrones is here and the Internet is all abuzz about what’s happening in Westeros! But did you know there are some important financial lessons from Game of Thrones? Read on to find out more…
Beware the folly of kings.
Remember House Baratheon? Robert took the throne of the Seven Kingdoms of Westeros after a successful rebellion and proceeded to neglect his duties as a king and alienated his closest advisors up until the point of his untimely death. Everything he fought so hard was undone due to his carelessness in ruling his kingdom and left us with The War of Five Kings.
His son, Joffrey ultimately fared no better and proceeded to make himself the most hated person in Westeros (and to audiences across the world) as a tyrant who then ended up on the wrong end of a poisoned wine goblet.
Stay grounded and be fully committed to managing your finances at all times and never let yourself be manipulated into living beyond your means. Don’t let yourself be taken in by short-term successes like these two failed kings.
Build a legacy that lasts, “Winter is coming”.
Look at Tywin Lannister, despite his extremely dysfunctional family and ungrateful children; he was always obsessed about creating a legacy that would last. In his eyes, every decision he made was always for the greater good of house Lannister. Unlike Robert Baratheon, whose goals were too short-sighted and eventually turned into dust, Tywin was always planning one step ahead to ensure his family’s interests were well protected. Well, right up until he took a crossbow to the stomach courtesy of his son Tyrion, of course.
And of course with the constant reminder that “Winter is coming” (thanks Jon Snow), it doesn’t help to always think ahead and be prepared.
The years will fly by quickly and before you know it, you might find yourself facing retirement. You should always be working towards building a financial legacy that you and your family can depend on in your retirement years. But don’t forget to enjoy life as well because you never know what might happen in the future.
Always pay your debts.
As the saying goes, “A Lannister always pays his debts.” We’ve seen Tyrion and Jaime live up to this saying several times in the Game of Thrones series by paying off anyone they owe coins or favours to. And while we’re pretty sure that the saying also means that any attempts at backstabbing or murderous plots against the Lannisters will be harshly dealt with in kind, that doesn’t mean we can’t apply it to a real life financial lesson! After all, who doesn’t want to be “Rich like a Lannister”?
Don’t let your debts spiral out of control and make sure you know the difference between good debt and bad debt. You don’t want to be working yourself to death by paying high-interest charges on your credit cards, so learn to manage your debts wisely.
Photo credit: HBO
Never borrow more than you can repay.
Think about the Battle of the Bastards and remember how, right when you thought all hope was lost, Sansa and LIttlefinger appear with the Vale army to help Jon Snow defeat Ramsay Bolton? Sansa Stark must have known that this favour was not for free – in fact, Littlefinger made his advances and his intent of sitting next to her on the throne even clearer.
It also reminds us of the saying “never bite off more than you can chew”, be very aware of your financial appetite and your budget before you land yourself in excessive debt. We should aim to achieve our financial goals, not burden ourselves with debt that could potentially lead to bankruptcy.
A healthy debt to income ratio is around 30%, this means that you utilise 30% of your monthly income to service your debts. A higher debt to income ratio means you could be in excessive debt which prevents you from reaching your financial goals, like saving for retirement.
“The Iron Bank will have its due.”
On that note, here’s another saying that you can hear whispered in the shadows of the Seven Kingdoms. In season one, we discovered that Westeros was heavily in debt to the tune of several million gold Dragons to the Iron Bank of Braavos. Not only are they the most powerful banking institution in the world of Game of Thrones, they are known for not messing around when it comes to collecting on their what’s rightfully owed to them.
When Cersei Lannister refuses to repay Westeros’ debts, their immediate reaction was to freeze all outstanding loans and switch allegiances to Stannis Baratheon and start funding his armies instead. Which as you can tell, doesn’t bode well for the longevity of Westeros’ ruling house.
Paying off your bills or debts that you owe to banks, financial institutions or anyone else for that matter is extremely important. Not doing so will jeopardise your chances of getting a loan in the future as you will have an extremely poor credit history. With CCRIS and CTOS reports readily available to the banks in Malaysia, this could even affect your chances of buying that dream home, sports car or even getting a credit card!
Good things come to those who wait.
Daenerys Targaryen has had it rough, what with her psychotic older brother and family’s history of having a tendency to go insane. Not only did she get married off as a political move, her warlord husband Khal Drogo soon ended up dead, due to a plot by someone Daenerys had initially trusted. But Daenerys persevered and made strategic alliances of her own which put her at the head of an army with not one, but THREE dragons.
Photo credit: HBO
Talk about a spectacular comeback for someone who had already been written off by her enemies.
It’s hard not to be disheartened when you’re faced with what seems like a mountain of debt that you can’t overcome. The point is, always be patient and persevere through whatever challenges your financial situation may bring. If you need help, don’t be afraid to reach out to organisations like AKPK and tackle your financial challenges head on. Baby steps will lead you to giant strides.
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