Your life needs a board of advisers

You may be a senior executive working for a board, whether it is professional, academic or community. A professional board provides governance, oversight and strategic direction. An academic board focuses on education, institutional development and accountability, while a community board helps guide initiatives and ensure they deliver value to the people they serve. But there is one area none of these boards can support: your personal life. For that, you need your own personal board of advisers.

I have had the privilege of serving on different formal boards, from financial and academic to community platforms. Sitting on these boards has taught me a lot about governance, accountability, decision-making and the importance of having people with different expertise around the table. Over time, I realised that the same principle can be applied to our personal lives.

Who do you turn to when you have a difficult personal decision to make? Who challenges your thinking when you are unsure about your next career move? Who gives you honest advice when the decision is not about business, but about life?

This is why I believe everyone should have a personal board of advisers.

Unlike a formal board, this one does not need appointments, meetings, minutes or a boardroom. It is simply made up of people you trust, respect and learn from, with different experiences that can offer perspectives you may not have yourself.

Successful people understand this too. Warren Buffett has spoken about the influence of his mentor Benjamin Graham, while Bill Gates has spoken about how much he learned from Buffett. Oprah Winfrey has also described the importance of having trusted people around her who provide advice and perspective.

Your personal board can include a trusted friend, colleague or family member. The members should ideally bring experience in areas you care about, such as business, finance, technology, leadership, relationships or personal development.

But before all of them, I believe there should be one person you turn to first: your chief adviser.

For me, that person is my dad — an experienced, retired professional senior executive banker who is also religious and has tremendous life experience. He is not an expert in everything, and he does not need to be. He is my generalist adviser. His experience comes from decades of living, working, making decisions, dealing with people, facing challenges and learning from both successes and mistakes. Most importantly, his advice comes without expecting anything in return. That, for me, is priceless.

So how do you build your own personal board?

First, start with a chief adviser. Choose someone with broad life experience who understands you, knows your values and genuinely wants you to succeed.

Second, identify the gaps in your experience. Find people who know what you do not know. Someone may understand finance, another business, technology, relationships or leadership. But choose carefully. Experience alone is not enough. Ask yourself: Does this person genuinely want me to succeed? A good adviser should sometimes challenge you, tell you uncomfortable truths and make you reconsider your decisions.

Third, listen, but decide for yourself. Advisers provide perspective; you remain responsible for your decisions. I sometimes listen to five people and still make a decision based on my gut feeling, backed by calculated risk and experience.

Finally, appreciate your advisers. Do not only call them when you need something. Check on them, thank them, support them and show them that their contribution matters.

To conclude, the value of formal boards that I have learned through my professional life is noteworthy. But I have also learned that some of the most important advice in life happens outside the boardroom.

Your success may have your name on it, but it is rarely built by you alone. Trust me. Until we catch up again next week, continue winning.