When it comes to ordering a pizza, there are so many different outlets we can use, and, even then, there are so many different flavours to suit our tastes – from meaty, seafood, vegetarian to vegan pizza. There’s even a range of crusts we can choose between, from thin to crusty to pan fried. For the more health conscious among us there’s now available four-star nutritional pizzas.
You know, choosing the right KiwiSaver provider and scheme for you can be like choosing the type of pizza we want. There are so many providers out there, and even when we may have found a provider we like there’s a range of funds between conservative, balanced, growth or aggressive and it can be confusing.
Now, like choosing that nutritious pizza, there’s a range of ethical – or socially responsible – KiwiSaver schemes and providers in the market. This can make it difficult to choose something that matches what we’re looking for. While in selecting a pizza it will depend on what flavour or taste we’re looking for, in choosing a KiwiSaver scheme that’s right for us it’s down to our individual values and beliefs.
Values are very abstract concepts aren’t they? But basically they’re our preferences and priorities. We only really know that values are in our lives when we’re living in line with them. Unlike that pizza in the picture, values are so intangible; we can’t touch them. It could be said that our values are ideas that enable us to prioritise all our experiences.
Our beliefs influence and create our values. The Christian KiwiSaver Scheme is based on universally accepted Christian values, and our investment team apply those values to where funds are invested.
Just like in choosing the type of pizza you eat – whether you want a vegetarian or even vegan pizza the key to avoiding any value conflicts is to be really clear about your priorities and align these with all aspects of your life – from your choice of pizza to including in your KiwiSaver provider or fund the type of companies you would want to invest in.
When next you order a pizza think about how you choose the toppings and base, see if it lines up with your values. If you would like to talk with us about our ethical investment options check us out at Anglican Financial Care’s Christian KiwiSaver Scheme website. Or, if you prefer, give us a call on (0508) 738 473.
