8 Ways Mahjong Can Teach Us How to Manage Our Money

Two upright mahjong tiles on green velvet with other tiles in the background.

Back in 2024, I took a mahjong lesson with a friend and was instantly hooked. I joined a league soon after and now play weekly. And I'm not the only one to be bitten by the bug.

This Chinese game is having a big moment — Eventbrite reports that between 2023 and 2024, searches for mahjong events jumped by 365%.

In my hometown of Charlotte, North Carolina, Axios recently reported that people are creating mahjong rooms inside their homes.

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True confession: A dedicated space for mahjong play was the first thing on my wish list when we moved into our new home last year. It's my favorite room in our new house.

Lately, my love of the game has had me pondering what mahjong and money have in common. A lot, surprisingly.

In fact, here are eight takeaways from mahjong that can be used to cultivate the right mindset and skills for investing and managing money. There are probably more, but I chose eight because it's a very lucky number in Chinese culture — a number that's linked to wealth and good fortune.

1. Be OK with uncertainty and look for comfort in probabilities

In mahjong, you don't know which tiles you'll draw next, just as you can't predict stock market movements. Success in both areas comes from your ability to understand probabilities, manage risk and make decisions with incomplete or evolving information.

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2. Consider a balance of offense and defense

In mahjong, you can play aggressively for a win, or defensively to avoid helping opponents, by discarding certain tiles. Financial planning has the same tension — sometimes you have to pursue higher returns (perhaps when the time horizon is extended) and other times you must focus on protecting the downside and limit your losses.

3. Act carefully with limited resources

Tiles are limited, and once discarded, they're gone. Money is similar. Income is finite and once spent, it can't be reused. Both require thoughtful budgeting and allocation of limited resources.

4. Adapt to changing conditions

A promising mahjong hand with a line nearly in place can suddenly become impossible to win as the game evolves and tiles are played. Likewise, life events, economic changes or market shifts require adjustments to your financial plan. You must adapt and pivot while striving to "win" in the long run.

5. Be patient and disciplined

Winning at mahjong often means waiting for the right tile rather than forcing a bad move. Financial success also can reward the patience that comes from sticking to a plan, avoiding emotional decisions and letting time work in your favor.

6. Learn from experience

Each mahjong round teaches you patterns, timing and mistakes. Financial planning offers opportunities as you review outcomes, refine strategies and apply lessons learned.

7. Be ready for new rules

Every year, the National Mah Jongg League, which oversees the American version of the game, releases a new card with different hands and rules to add more excitement to the game.

Every year, the IRS makes changes to the tax code that require tax planners and taxpayers to adjust their approach. Knowing this and being ready to follow the map set by others may help you win in both spaces.

And now for my favorite …

8. Know that friends make things more fun

It's possible to play mahjong alone, competing with robots online, but it's nothing like the experience of gathering with three other players to play in person. Even if you're playing with strangers, the experience is much more enjoyable. Often, there's casual conversation and laughter.

Similarly, it's more fun to set financial goals with friends. For years, I've seen friends share budgeting hacks and serve as accountability partners in financial goal setting.

Friends make everything more fun — and the really good ones keep us honest with ourselves.

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Mary Ware is an experienced senior wealth advisor and managing partner of Carnegie Private Wealth in Charlotte, North Carolina. It's her dream job because she gets to help individuals and families pursue their financial dreams. After 20 years in the business, she's enjoying seeing some of those long-term visions — graduations, once-in-a-lifetime vacations and retirements — become reality. Mary sees her role as helping her clients discover what's important to them, creating a plan for pursuing their goals and walking beside them as they do the work. She's upbeat and positive. She believes it's never too late to get started working toward financial goals.