A Bull's Eye View

Have you ever been in a situation where you looked lost with nowhere to go? This may not only apply in driving along a random road, but in life in general.

I've been there. Probably about a bunch of times. When I realized that after everything that has happened, where exactly is it leading me? 

The latest came about a week ago. I was on a roll, setting my plans and priorities for that day the night before. They included appointments, meetings, meet-ups with friends, and time for myself which includes having a book on my hands. I'd made a couple of those to-do lists worked out at the start of the day.

Then, one by one, some of my plans for the day started to falter. Appointments getting cancelled. Meetings postponed. Lost track of the time due to other unimportant stuff. To sum it all up, after all the plans and objectives, where was it leading me? Nowhere but nowhere itself.

How are you going to hit your aim when your aim is not even defined?

Sudden Realizations from CASHFLOW

I know it's been a long time coming, that I haven't posted anything here for the past few months.

Everything you need to learn about money. You can have it all in this board.

Some of you may be curious. Some of you may not care. But this is what I do.

Somehow my months of play, study and work have caught up that I forgot to open and manage my blog. And to a surprise, my blog is still getting a lot of views from people I might not even recognize, let alone if they really exist.

So there's this game my friend brought along in the office. I have actually played it a couple of times before, and at last I got hold of the material and we got to play it.

Ever heard of the board game CASHFLOW?

Discipline and Destination

Goals are those that keep you awake the whole day and make you busy working to make them happen because you know its importance and value to yourself and to the people you love.

Do you have goals? Do you have the motivation to earn more money so you can save and invest more for your goals?

If none, this post is not worth reading to you.

If yes, go ahead.

Some [Financial] Safety & Security, Please (6)

If you haven't read the five previous blog posts about providing financial safety and security for you and your family, you might want to take the time to read this, this, also this, especially this, and then this.

I was on YouTube yesterday and searched for quality videos on how life insurance can be best presented as a way to lessen the impact of a financial dilemma like the loss of a loved one, especially the family's breadwinner.

Thankfully, I found this less-than-two-minute video on appreciating the value of the one thing that matters most to all of us - family - and how we can protect our financial well-being from any unforeseen event.

I do not own the video, obviously, but I know this is worth two minutes of your time that you can understand in video form what life insurance really is all about and why you shouldn't wait to get old to have one:

Mr. Winston Churchill does it right.

We make a living by what you get and we make a life by what we GIVE.

It's never too late to get one. Get yourself the right plan, for the right people, from the right financial advisor, and at the right company.


Once implemented, you will have for yourself financial safety and security that no other financial tool can provide.

What's your plan? Contact me.

P.S. If you want to know more about the plans and services which I can provide for you to secure your family and provide a bright future by making your money grow and work harder, visit the Investment Plans tab above or just click HERE. It is never too late to make that next step in building a solid financial foundation on the road to wealth. 

A 5-Star Hotel Investment Grade

I just got back from a legendary week-long vacation in Siquijor, an island paradise in the Philippines for a family reunion / fiesta. Now it's back to business.

Meanwhile, do you know of any news regarding the latest investment upgrade of the Philippine economy?Because that was apparently the only news I cared about while I was enjoying my exile on an island with my family and closest relatives.

If you are a proud investor of the Philippine stock market and the economy in general, you would surely love the news that the country has been upgraded to Investment Grade just last week by Standard and Poor's, an international credit rating firm.

According to Rappler, "An investment grade means the Philippines, as a borrowing country, has a strong ability to pay its debt. This lowers its borrowing costs, generating savings, which may be spend for social services. For Filipinos, it means better education and health care, and affordable loans for major purchases."

So what does this mean for an ordinary Filipino with little to no knowledge about investing in the Philippine economy?

Reading above is nosebleed to an individual who is not used to reading business news and understanding some financial jargon.

A Tale of Two Buses, cont.

So I worked on my story-telling skills, and it was good for a start. It was a story that was trying to prove a point. A point that has long term financial implications when taken to heart the lessons learned.

If you were brought here by accident, and you have no idea what you are about to read here, it is highly recommended to read the first part of this 2-part blog series here.

If you have read the story I just made a few days ago, then you are prepared to understand the lessons and the interpretations of the characters, situations and places presented. In personal finance, especially for protection and investments, a great way to make people understand it is through a simple story. And those involved in the story.

So let's dissect them one by one:

A Tale of Two Buses

Ahhh summer.

That time of the year again when you're out in the beach or in some favorite vacation spot chilling with your family and friends.

That time of the year when you have nothing to worry about school if you are a student.

That time of the year when you can just bask in the glory under the sun and make things happen.

So there's this wonderful place in the Philippines called Baguio City. Known to be the country's summer capital, my intrigue over why it is called such will eventually be answered once I touch down there next month (I've been there, though, like a few years ago on a very cold November, but that obviously wasn't summer).

Here's a quick background about the city: Baguio city is an elevated metropolis in the center of Luzon, the largest island in the Philippines. The climate in the city is as cold, or maybe colder, than the usual places that you would often visit around the country. 

To get to Baguio, there are apparently a lot of ways. And they all differ in number of hours of travel, plus the fare and the availability of schedules.

One way to get there is the simplest mode of transportation, cavemen are definitely good at this - walking. By foot you might get there from the capital city of Manila in about a week, depending on weather conditions, physical capability and stopovers as needed. If you want to lose weight effectively, going uphill from the capital city to Baguio is once strong recommendation.

Another way is through a bicycle. With the force of gravity strongly against you, and the strength to make every pedal towards the entrance of the city, I'd give you about 4 days from Manila. Make sure to have your  wheels checked once in a while because it's gonna be a long ride.

The bus is one of the most popular options for tourists in getting to Baguio city. From Manila it is like an eight hour ride. Commercial buses are good; private vehicles and tour buses are fun and convenient.

Clearly the fastest way to get to Baguio city is by a plane. In less than 30 minutes from Manila you arrive. So quick it's just like going to work on a regular day.

So what am I trying to say here? This is the situation. I hope you enjoy the ride.

Some [Financial] Safety & Security, Please (5)

Basically, the main uses of life insurance are for protection of yourself, your family and your assets, and investment to provide you with long term savings and a comfortable retirement with the cash values and dividends that have accumulated over the years.

Now people have come to ask this one question: When is the right time to get life insurance?

To answer that, we always start with WHY.

WHY should I get life insurance? WHY is it really important to get one? WHY, do you think it would really benefit me?

I believe my previous posts on financial safety and security through this instrument has been well-explained. If not yet, feel free to contact me.

So back to WHEN.

When exactly do you need to have one?

Some [Financial] Safety & Security, Please (4)

The thing about life insurance is that its common objective is that while you are still working to make a living for you and you family, you can already safeguard the financial storm that can bring about in an individual in case of death and disability, accident or critical illness. While making sure the surviving family members live on and sustain the standard of living after the loss. At the same time, it can provide you with the funds necessary during your later years when your children are all grown up and you start to lean towards retirement

Eventually, as you grow older, the need for life insurance may lessen as your responsibilities have declined once your children are all grown up, having families of their own and planning for their respective families. Unless you are really financially free by the time you hit your desired retirement age, then you are left with no choice but to strive hard and continue to work.


Regardless of sex, race, socio-economic status and occupation, another purpose why life insurance can be of great benefit to people is...

2. Investment

Some [Financial] Safety & Security, Please (3)

One day someone came up to me and asked, "What is the right insurance plan for me?"

My answer to that would be "What is your plan?"


Life insurance serves different purposes, for different plans, for different hopes in the future.


In the end, it's all about "why you need it", and "how soon you should get one".


Remember the last time you saw something which looks valuable to your eyes? And after careful evaluation, whether you really need to buy it, its benefits to you, the affordability and warranty, you decided to purchase it?


Life insurance is indeed a need, just like that valuable item you saw in the supermarket. Some people just don't realize its value until their time is done here on earth, or when they really need it the most. Like I said on the previous post, the building blocks of wealth cannot stand without its foundation, which is insurance. And without it, you can see your wealth diminish and leave your family in financial rubble, which would end up in a scrambling of money and other financial instruments to keep up with the family's standard of living once you are gone.


So what are the different purposes / uses of life insurance? Let me count to you the ways.

Some [Financial] Safety & Security, Please (2)

A house can never be built without putting up a foundation to which it can stand on, or else a storm can just wash it away without warning. A business can never be set up without laying out the fundamental principles guiding the endeavor and every other factor that needs to be ruled in order to build it. A student may never be able to pass the exam without executing the most basic guideline in answering it - follow instructions.


In personal finance, a person may never be truly considered financially free if he does not arm himself with a foundation that helps build his wealth and protects him and his family from any financial disasters.


Friends, the road to wealth takes a long time to reach the destination (goal). Building your structure of financial freedom may take years, or even decades, to see it rise to the top and ready for use in achieving your needs and dreams in life. But without the proper support, base and foundation to keep it standing while you are building the structure, your financial value would collapse and put yourself, and probably your family, into rubble and financial depression that it may take a long period to recover, or maybe never.


This financial instrument that has the ability to protect you and your investments is insurance.

Some [Financial] Safety & Security, Please (1)

One of the most interesting - and sometimes controversial - financial instruments happens to be the one thing that most Filipinos do not have. Forget about how much money you have in the bank. Forget about the money you keep under the bed or on your piggy bank. Forget about your mutual funds, the money you invest in the stock market, and other instruments that help you make money work for you.

Sure, these things are such valuable financial assets for you and your family. I mean, they help much in achieving the goals you have and realizing your lifelong dreams. But what if you are just starting out with your job and little has been invested on these assets, and then something happens to you, that you get knocked six feet under with your most treasured people in the world - your family - looking down on you as you go ahead and meet your Creator?

If you have any of those financial instruments stated above (and I'm pretty sure you have, or else!), do you think the money you have right now is enough to give back to your loved ones? Do you think the money you have right now can give them the assurance that everything is going to be fine, financial wise when you are gone?

What am I really talking about here? Here's an example.

PYF: Hard to Do? Here's A Story

This series of blogs will talk to you about the importance of paying yourself first - the most powerful money management system I have ever known. Introduced to me in a seminar by a success coach last year, then tested and proven by the best selling personal finance authors I have come across in my self-education, this simple-yet-effective wealth management is the best thing that I've ever known about money and this can help me and you keep track of on the road to financial prosperity and freedom. And I wouldn't preach about this if I don't walk the talk.

If you got here by accident, I advise you go back to the introductory post about paying yourself first here so you could go along with the ride smoothly.



Honestly, in my experience, paying myself first was not as easy as it started. During the times when I received allowance from my parents, I always end up on two situations at the end of the day - one is that I would still have money because I learned to "save" for some useless thing. Another is that I end up with enough money just to get home.


Imagine if I had learned about paying myself first during my younger years when I was still studying. Think about how broke I have been in high school in college. Very little to no savings to say the least. If you had told me to pay myself first during that time, I would never hesitate to shake my head and not talk about it.


"So I'm not good at my money. It drains out of me almost every day. Then you expect me to save? Or pay myself first just as you said?"


I was sort of a loser at saving. At money. At finance. Nothing.


As I grew a little older - and wiser - I realized that things like these had to stop. All I ever thought of was that while you have money, you might want to spend it because it only comes to you once in a blue moon.


I was wrong.


I later realized that money had an immense value in each and every one of us. And the only way to harness its true value is to manage and take care of it before it leaves our hands and wallets.

PYF, then Make It Grow

This series of blogs will talk to you about the importance of paying yourself first - the most powerful money management system I have ever known. Introduced to me in a seminar by a success coach last year, then tested and proven by the best selling personal finance authors I have come across in my self-education, this simple-yet-effective wealth management is the best thing that I've ever known about money and this can help me and you keep track of on the road to financial prosperity and freedom. And I wouldn't preach about this if I don't walk the talk.

If you got here by accident, I advise you go back to the introductory post about paying yourself first here so you could go along with the ride smoothly.

By far if you have been following this series of fortunate, and extremely basic, method to get your finances on the right track, just as you wanted, it might as well be very obvious as to what the last piece of the puzzle is going to be in this "pay yourself first" practice.


If you have gone through giving back and preparing for the unexpected, then this one right here can most likely be the key to unlocking the door to financial freedom. Of course, it takes a lot of discipline, patience, and faith to get it done.


Growing up as a kid, I always thought that money can simply be placed in what we call piggy banks, where you drop coins regularly or as needed to and make it act as your "savings account". Actually, that technique did not mean much to me for reasons I don't have to uncover.

As I matured up to the point when I finished college, I thought money can just come and go and while you have it, you ought to spend it, rather than lose it all (take it from someone who used to gamble and spend till the last centavo in college).


Then a seminar on money management, coupled with self-education on personal finance and trainings had me realize a number of things that have to be considered in relation to this post:

PYF, so in Case of...

This series of blogs will talk to you about the importance of paying yourself first - the most powerful money management system I have ever known. Introduced to me in a seminar by a success coach last year, then tested and proven by the best selling personal finance authors I have come across in my self-education, this simple-yet-effective wealth management is the best thing that I've ever known about money and this can help me and you keep track of on the road to financial prosperity and freedom. And I wouldn't preach about this if I don't walk the talk.

If you got here by accident, I advise you go back to the introductory post about paying yourself first here so you could go along with the ride smoothly.

After reading the previous post about your regular and faithful offering to Him, which is the most important aspect of paying yourself first, I'm sure you have finally realized how happy and healthy it is for you to actually give back a portion to the Provider of wealth.

Normally, the "pay yourself first" is a certain percentage of how much you have to set aside as savings and investments before you actually use what is left for spending and cost of living. How much you are going to set as savings is really up to you, but if you have to start changing your financial beliefs and creating a wealth mindset in preparing and securing your future, doing this faithfully can be a remedy to your worries.


One vital part of your wealth management system is having an emergency fund.