What Does Polo Have To Do With Making Money in the Markets?

People often ask about Kim's background. Where did she learn so much about the financial markets?

The truth is, if you want to understand what makes Kim so passionate about the financial markets, and teaching people to profit from them, you would be better off looking at the sports she plays than her extensive professional resume.

Kim Snider plays competitive polo and is the sponsor of Team Magic Polo. Polo is most often compared to hockey on horseback. Kim, however, likens it to "playing chess at 35 miles per hour" which is not at all unlike the financial markets.

According to Kim, "Much of the time, the game is won or lost before you ever step out onto the field. Preparation and planning are key. The team that utilizes their players and horses most effectively is almost always going to win."

Kim has translated this need for sound strategy into her investment approaches. She realizes that the time to make decisions is not in the heat of battle. Having a proven strategy that she implements over and over allows her to avoid "over-thinking" the market or reacting to the emotions of fear and greed.

The rules of polo are based on a concept called "the line." The line extends infinitely ahead of and behind the ball and is created by its direction of travel. Each time the ball is touched, a new line is created. When horses are moving at 35 mph and the ball travels at speeds of up to 95 mph, the line can be a tricky concept. And yet, the safety of every player and every horse on the field, depends on every player knowing and respecting "the line" at all times. Failure to do so can mean grave injuries, or even death, for both players and horses.

Kim attended polo umpiring schools because she felt that an in-depth understanding of the rules would give her an advantage in the game. Kim believes that the financial markets are also a game. In fact, they are the most competitive of all games, played against some of the brightest people in the world, for the ultimate prize - money.

Kim has spent many years studying the rules of the financial markets. This understanding of the intricate details gives her the same advantage she sought out on the polo field. "In polo", says Kim, "everyone has a vested interest in everyone understanding how the game is played. That keeps the game relatively safe. If someone on the polo field doesn't know what they are doing, everyone is in danger. Unfortunately, in the financial markets, everyone seems to have a vested interest in keeping the individual investor in the dark. Many people have money in the markets and don't really understand the game. It's a setup. Kim's mission is to educate as many people as possible - to level the playing field a little bit."

One of the things that makes polo so challenging, and so rewarding, according to Kim, is that "You not only have three other humans for teammates, there are also four horses which must be made to perform if the team is to have any chance at winning." Kim has played, and excelled, at team sports all of her life including volleyball, basketball and softball, before taking up polo.

Kim says she has always been attracted to team sports because she enjoys working with others to achieve a goal rather than achieving solitary recognition. "To me, winning is much more rewarding when it is a shared victory. It is also much more challenging because you don't have as much control over a team as you do when competing as an individual. When it all comes together, it is a great feeling."

Many people ask why Kim has taken up teaching rather than continuing to trade on her own. While she still trades for her own accounts, she says, "I actually get more of a charge, if you can believe it, out of seeing my clients make money than doing it for myself. I guess I am just hard wired into playing for a team."

All polo players are conscious, on some level, that their chosen sport can be extremely dangerous. Each does his or her best to prepare, to double check equipment, to keep horses in top physical condition ... and then leaves the rest up to fate.

Kim says, "I would be lying if I said there was no attraction for me in the danger of the sport. I enjoy the adrenaline. I love playing polo more than anything else I have ever done. When I am on the field, I play to win, period. I don't think about the danger. If I did, I would be putting myself in more danger because I would be tentative."

"The financial markets are very similar to polo. There is no such thing as a no-risk game of polo, just as there is no such thing as a no-risk trade in stocks, options or futures. No matter how well prepared you are, flukes sometimes happen. You just have to know that sometimes things are going to go wrong and be prepared to deal with them. The fun of the game, both games, is in knowing that you are succeeding in a game that has a high degree of risk. For Kim Snider, that is the ultimate challenge."