Rich Money Habits

It’s 2 AM in the morning and I’m still typing away at my keyboard. I really just wanted to take this time to share with you what I am busy with lately, and let you in on an exciting project that I will be launching very very soon.

Three $100/ month income stream goal for 2011 explained

As you know, I’ve shared with you my personal goals for this year. One of those goals is to generate at least 3 streams of income generating $100 per month each. To some of you, it a small amount. Why not make a goal of earning a million instead?

Here’s why.

I’m not crazy. I know how to be realistic given that I still have a full-time day job I go to work to almost everyday.  But that’s not really the main reason why.

Right now, I’m actually more focused on learning how to set up systems to create little streams of income that will give cash flow in the future.  If it turns into a profitable venture later on and I end up earning a million, well and good!  If not, I know I will do better next time.

I understand it will probably take a lot of time, money and effort from me in the beginning while I’m still setting up the systems.  But my hope is that once the systems are running smoothly, it will take less and less time from me to maintain it.

To be honest, I can actually earn the $100 a month quickly out of the decent income coming from my day job as an IT consultant.  Unfortunately, it comes with a stiff price.  It still requires my time and effort day in and day out.  So if I want another $100 for next month, I’d have to show up again. If I don’t show up, I won’t have any income. And it does take a lot of my time and effort showing up with the same energy every time.

The Challenge

The challenge is to learn how to setup systems so that it will be able to automatically bring value to other people, people who are willing to pay for the value they receive. Which, in turn, will give additional stream of income from this blog.

My goal for this year is to focus on setting up those systems to be able to at least support this blog. And $100 seems like a good amount to start with. I know, embarking on this project will not make me rich right away. I might even lose some money for investing on setting up these systems.

But to me, I value the experience more than the income. I know I will learn something valuable from the experience. And those lessons will help me in the long run.  That makes it so exciting. That’s why I want to get started right away. 

Current streams of income for this blog

A few days ago, I learned that I actually reached $100 income from Google adsense. Yes, finally! After, 1 year and 4 months!   Some people may say, “What?! 1 year and 4 months?!  Why so long?”

I know it’s a long time. And I’m ok with that.

It’s something that I decided early on when I created this blog. I don’t want to focus on ads alone. I want to focus more on bringing value to you.  And if that means removing or at least minimizing distracting ads, I am all for it.

Another income stream that’s been helping support this blog is the affiliate income from referring my friends to Bo Sanchez’ Truly Rich Club. My wife and I have been a member for around 2 years already and so far, we’ve learned a lot and been blessed bountifully from joining the club.

Do you want to know my secret in deciding what to stocks to invest on?  It’s Bo’s monthly Stocks Update Newsletter sent exclusively to members of the Truly Rich Club.  The newsletter lists down recommended companies that are worth looking into along with their potential gain if they hit their target price.

Reading through the list of recommended companies helps me get started in focusing on specific companies that I want to research more on.  Some of which I could later decide to invest in.

What to expect from Rich Money Habits in the coming weeks

In the coming weeks, there will be a lot of exciting things happening here at Rich Money Habits Blog.

The first and most important — I will be launching my very first product for the year 2011! Yehey! While I don’t expect to become a millionaire from this one product alone, I hope that this is a start of something remarkable.

My hope is that this will help me in my goal of creating a monthly income of $100 a month. When you think about it, that’s just PhP 5,000! If I just have a little bit of initiative, I can go find a job that could pay me that amount doing ordinary stuffs.

Why Launch Your Own Product

One thing I learned while promoting other people’s products is that you have very little control over how the product is created and delivered. You rely heavily on the other party’s integrity in delivering value to your friends when you refer it to them because to be honest, you really don’t have any other choice.

That’s one of the major reasons why I’ve not been focusing much on Google adsense.  I don’t have a clue on who is behind those automatically generate ads.  I’d hate to think I might be promoting a sleazy or scammy product that cold potentially hurt you.

That’s why I am working hard on giving something more valuable by releasing my own product soon.  At least, I’d have the control on making sure that I create and deliver something really valuable that can really help you in your journey to financial freedom.

Almost ready for launch

My very first product of the year is almost complete. My wife has been helping me out with it a lot lately.  It’s like our mini-project outside of our daily jobs, where we create something remarkable together.  Besides, I’ve had so much fun because it’s our little bonding moment at the end of each day.  I guess you can say it’s a product out of love (Cheesy, I know, but what the heck Valentine’s day is almost here)!

I will be launching my very first guide “Rich Money Habits – 8 Ways To Shift Your Money Habits and Be Rich!”. If you’ve been visiting this blog for some time, you might notice that the title looks familiar. And it is!

The ebook is actually based on the highly popular Rich Money Habits 101 Series Newsletter, where more than 1,200 have already been blessed.

Here’s what they have to say about the Rich Money Habits 101 Series:

“Very informative, full of good ideas!”

-  Fred from Cebu City

“Very personal, very simple from the heart lessons about finances!”

-  Anna from Mandaluyong City

“Thought provoking!”

- Rod from General Santos City

“Concise, informative and a good read!”

- Deo from Urdaneta Pangasinan

“Eye-opening thoughts and financial advise on wise investing”

- Francisco Jr. from Butuan City

“It’s complete advise on how to reach your financial freedom. The insights are very helpful. From changing your mindset and habits to the “How-To’s” of different vehicles to financial freedom.”

- Gailord Fidel from Mandaluyong City

“It addressed issues that I hadn’t recognized in myself before and also it came just at a time when I was starting up a business. Now I am always looking out for what I may be doing wrong and making sure that this time around I am developing only rich money habits.”

- Lissa from Lusaka, Zambia

“I liked the part about saving 20% of your income. I had difficulty saving before I read your Rich Money Habits series. I was paying first all my debts and expenses when salary day comes and what was left which was almost nothing to savings .Now I’m learning how to save properly with discipline and determination.”

- Rowena from Alkhobar, Saudi Arabia

“Fantastic! I like the idea of protecting your money from its enemy including yourself…and to invest early in life like planting a tiny seed if you want to succeed financially. These great ideas, I think should be taught to every poor and struggling Filipino. Had I read your blogs early on I should have protected my money retirement money. But its not too late anyway. I got the idea, applied it, and also shared it to others.”

- Eduardo from Malaybalay City

“All of the ideas in Rich Money Habits series are very helpful!”

- Johnry from Cebu City

“Informative. Relevant and true to life experiences. Proven and tested.”

-  Leo from Manama, Bahrain

I am going to be very upfront with you. 80% of the Rich Money Habits guide ebook is based on the same material found in the Rich Money Habits Newsletter. I know I am taking a big risk here for letting that out. But being honest with you is more important to me than having that extra sale.

I am a straight-forward kind of guy and I hate misleading people.

Why buy the ebook if you can get it free through the newsletter? Great question. And in all honesty, I think it’s something a lot of people will probably do. And I am ok with that. It means more to me to have you receive this information any way you want than making the extra buck.

However, I do realize that some of you still prefer to consume the material in a more readable format, where everything is together in one neat package available right away, and not have to wait for several weeks. The Rich Money Habits guide ebook gives you that choice to get all the information you want in an instant.

I understand that this will not be for everyone. My only hope is that the income from those who buy the Rich Money Habits ebook could at least support the newsletter so that more and more people can get the inspiring articles for free.

It takes money to maintain the system that send out each of the Rich Money Habits Newsletter issues every week to the more than 1,200+ subscribers (and still growing rapidly!).

Launching this ebook not only gives an option to those who want to get the information in a more readable format, it will also allow me to make the Rich Money Habits Newsletter available for free to a lot more people!

This way, I can focus on providing more value to you.

Win, win, win!

That’s all for now.  This is already getting too long.  It just shows how excited I am on this new project I am embarking on!

 

 

P.S.  Come join me in this journey!  If you want to get into the priority list to get HUGE discounts and bonuses once the Rich Money Habits guide is out, you can sign-up here!

P.P.S. If you are a personal finance blogger and would like to post a review or you just want to help me promote the ebook as an affiliate (yes, you too can earn from this!), just send me an email through the contact page, and I’ll work out the details with you from there.

Last week, I shared my reflections of the past year 2010.  Today, I’d like to share with you my personal financial goals for the coming year 2011.  This is actually my way of challenging myself by publicly declaring my goals for the coming year.

My 3 major financial goals this year 2011

1) Create at least 3 new streams of income earning at least $100 per month each

Right now, I am still working full time at my current job as an IT consultant for a credit card company.  While I do enjoy my job, I still want to have more options.  I want to be able to one day control my income streams.  Having a job is good.  However, it is only a temporary solution to a permanent financial problem — not having enough money.

I’ve been fortunate to earn quite enough to be able to sustain me and my family and have some extra money saved every month.  The big challenge for me this year, just like in the past year, is to learn how to invest a portion of that money for my family’s future.

I don’t exactly know what the 3 income streams will be.  One thing is for sure — for this year, I’d like to focus on investing to generate more cashflow.  Last year, most of my investments had pretty good returns.  The only problem is, they were only capital gains. There’s no monthly cash flow.  This year, my goal is to learn to invest for cash flow and capital gains.  I’m considering putting up a business.  Or perhaps finally invest in a property and rent it out.  Or may be I can explore going into franchising.  I will share more to you as I get clearer on how to achieve this goal.

2) Go somewhere I’ve never been to for a week, every quarter of the year.

This is my way of growing myself.  I feel I haven’t grown that much personally and haven’t widen my horizon for the past year.  This year, I want to go somewhere I’ve never been to. Either in the Philippines or outside.  I’d like to experience and learn new things to keep my hunger alive.  I’d like be able to share exciting stories.  I’d like to be able to know what it feels like to discover and be amazed again.

As I shared last week, I was able to travel to Bohol with my wife last December.  It realy felt good just doing nothing, hearing the soothing sound of the waves while trying to relax in a hammock by the beach.  Working in a fast-paced IT and financial services industry sometimes takes its toll on my mind and body.  I feel I need to freshen up every once in a while to stay sharp and energized.

3) Weigh no more than 85kg at any time of the year.

It’s been one of my greatest struggles every year to keep my weight down.  I am getting sick quite often the past year.  I can’t go on and blame my work or my lack of time for exercise.  I know that it’s just a matter of building new habits in terms of my overall health.  Eat right. Get some exercise.

So this year, I want to be able to maintain my weight to a more manageable level — no more than 85 kgs.  It will take some time, but I’m ready for it. Let’s bring it on!

I know goals #2 and #3 don’t look like a financial goal at all.  They seem more to do with personal development than money.  I totally agree, it looks that way.  And it’s the way I prefer it.  I personally think it is very important to take care of my mind and body in my journey to financial freedom.  As I’ve described in one of my articles, your health is more important than your money.  Without it, none of your other financial riches really matter.

2011 Goals for Rich Money Habits

My goal for Rich Money Habits is to be more consistent in posting new articles — at least one per week.  As I share my thoughts to you, I gain more clarity.  The clearer I am with the things I want, the nearer I am to my goals.

Here are some of the things I’ve been thinking as I was doing some planning for Rich Money Habits this year.

- create more useful articles
- find more ways to reach out to more people
- find more ways to help you in your financial goals
- launch a product that helps you manage your money better
- redesign blog so you can navigate it easily

As you might have probably guessed, most of my goals above are still in the works.  And quite general, if you might add.  I still don’t know what exactly I am going to do.  But I think the important thing is to use these goals to remind myself what I need to focus on — helping you.  Everything else is secondary.

Cheers to an exciting year ahead!

This article describes the 3 tips on how to do build a successful business.  This is part 3 of a 3-part series on the lessons I’ve learned from the recent Money Summit and Wealth Expo. 

If you missed the first 2 articles, you can read them here

• Part 1 – Real-estate Investing
• Part 2 – Online Stock Market Investing in the Philippines

Ask anyone of your friends and at least one will say they dream of starting their own business someday.  The fact of the matter is, it’s easy to start a business.  The hard part is building it into a successful one. 

They say 1 in every 10 businesses fail in the first 5 years.  Of those who were able to survive, 1 in every 10 will fail in the next 5 years.  Here are 3 tips I learned during the Money Summit and Wealth Expo that maybe able to help you beat these odds.

1) Sell

The secret to building a successful business is learning how to sell. Unfortunately, selling brings out a not so good connotation to a lot of people.  But the fact of the matter is, everyday, you are already selling.  For example:

• When you were born, you sold to get what you want by crying
  • When you were hungry, you cried and someone fed you,
  • When you wanted to pee, you cried and someone changed your diapers,
  • When you wanted attention you cried and they made funny faces to make you smile. 
• When you got a little older, you sold your way
  • to play outside with other kids,
  • to play computer games, or
  • to watch TV
• When you went to school, you sold your parents
  • to give you “baon” (allowance)
  • to buy you a nice school bag
  • to go study at a university
• When you applied for a job,
  • you sold yourself as an investment to the company and they hired you
  • you sold yourself as an asset to the company and they raised your salary
  • you sold yourself so good other companies are now trying to recruit you
• When you liked someone,
  • you sold yourself into her/him going on a date with you
  • you sold yourself into being her boyfriend/his girlfriend
  • and then eventually sold yourself to spending the rest your lives together in marriage

The question is not whether you like selling or not.  You have no other choice.  You  are already selling whether you realize it or not.  The only question you need to ask yourself, is how you can be better at selling. 

According to Dr. Rodolfo “Dups” delos Reyes, best-selling author and speaker at the Money Summit, selling can be described in just one word – “attitude”.  To sell effectively, you have to address the needs and fears of your customers.  The #1 need of people is acceptance, and their #1 fear is rejection.

All other techniques on selling revolves around this very simple idea of helping someone else solve his or her problem by having the attitude to be his or her friend.     

2) Solve Problems

According to Zig Ziglar, “You will get all you want in life if you help enough other people get what they want.” When you learn how to solve other people’s problems, they will be more than willing to pay you for it.  Think about it.  Why do you think your boss is willing to pay you your salary if you are not solving his problems. 

Now, let’s ask what are some small businesses trying to solve?

• a food cart business helps temporary solve the problem of hunger by making it easier for busy people to buy and eat on the go
• a home-based internet marketing business helps people find the information or products that they need
• an Ebay business helps collectors find rare items

How about the BIG businesses?

• Google helps organize information and make it available to you fast…really fast
• Microsoft helps companies increase their productivity by using their software tools like Windows and Microsoft Office
• McDo or Jollibee allows people on the go to enjoy a meal fast

3) Build Systems

The only difference between us and Henry Sy, is his ability to leverage the skills and efforts of thousands of people working for him to build his empire of SM malls in the country.  The secret?  He knows how to build systems. 

Can you imagine Henry Sy, doing everything himself? Of course not.  It would be ridiculous.  But that’s what a lot of us are trying to do when we go into business. And we end up doing a job working in the business instead of having the business work for us.

The business system differentiates BIG businesses from small ones.  According to Robert Kiyosaki, you know you have a BIG business when you can take a vacation for 1 year, come back and find your business still standing and more profitable than ever. The challenge then becomes making your business systems work even without you.

How then can you build systems?

One way is through franchising. Franchising helps people get into business by leveraging the systems built by a successful one.  McDonald’s for example, is run by business systems.  Whether you are in Singapore or Manila, a McDonald’s store will practically be the same. 

Another way is to use leverage.  Leverage other people’s skills.  Leverage technology.  Leverage other people’s money.

Lastly, you can get a mentor to help you learn how to build those systems and shorten your learning curve.

 

That concludes our 3-part series on the lessons learned from the recent Money Summit and Wealth Expo. 

• Part 1 – Real-estate Investing
• Part 2 – Online Stock Market Investing in the Philippines
• Part 3 – How To Build a Successful Business

 

Dear readers, what other tips can you share to build a successful business?

It’s now July! The first half of the year has already passed.  Time does fly so fast, doesn’t it?  So many things have happened and I am still amazed at how this blog has grown steadily over the past 6 months.  Before we welcome the next half of the year, I’d like to take this time to reflect and give you an update on my 3 financial goals for this year 2010. 

Financial Goal #1 – Buy a House!

My first goal for 2010 is to Buy a House.  The short update is…NO we have NOT bought a house yet.  But maybe soon.

My wife and I actually invested in a house…but only for a private lending deal.  Besides, we won’t actually own the house, so that doesn’t count.  That deal, however, introduced us to great friends doing business in real-estate whom I am learning a lot from.  In the next months I will also be spending some time to learn investing in real-estate myself. 

We’ve also been looking at buying a nice 2-bedroom unit on a pre-selling mid-rise condo.  But this one will NOT be ready for occupancy until April 2012.  We actually paid the reservation already so hopefully, if everything is in order, my first goal for the year could actually be within reach (at least technically).  

Financial Goal #2 – Invest 20% of my money

The second goal I have is to invest 20% of my money.  I’ve started investing in the Philippine Stock Market.  I’ve tried the cost-averaging method via CitisecOnline’s EIP and even Bo Sanchez’ SUPER EIP way! The experience has been an eye opener for me. 

Apart from that, I also got into a private lending deal on real-estate.  While I haven’t gotten my money back yet, I’m confident this will lead into more investing opportunities in the future. 

Just last week, one of my friends also asked me to invest in her Travel Agency business.   Normally, I don’t lend money unless I’m very sure I will get my money back.  However, since I know her and the money (including interest) will be returned in just 7 days, I thought it was worth a try.  If this deal goes well, I might be encouraged to invest again in the future and probably open it up also to dear readers of this site.

I’ve also been investing heavily on my personal development these past months.  I’ve just attended the Money Summit and Wealth Expo last weekend to learn more about money, business and investing.  The 2-day seminar was a blast!  The energy from the speakers as well as the attendees was simply amazing!  Up to now, I’m still digesting everything.  I’m really excited to share the lessons I’ve learned from that seminar to our dear readers.  So, watch out for that in the coming weeks.

Financial Goal #3 – Be Consciously Alive

The 3rd and last goal I have is to be consciously alive.  This goal has more to do about my desire to live a healthier lifestyle than anything else.  This is the reason why I think your health is more important than your money. 

While I’m not sick at the moment, my health has not been ideal the past few months.  It is not where it is supposed to be.  My lifestyle is not very good.  I still drink coffee a lot.  I am also having a hard time getting enough sleep.  As a result, I’ve easily gotten a cold every now and then.

I’m always in a hurry. Most of the time, I go for fast food.  My weight has increased so much that my pants now hardly fit.  Oh well, it’s a good thing fitted pants are the “in” thing these days.  I don’t have to feel so out of place.

One good news is that I finally used our condo’s gym.  Finally.  Just today.  And I liked it.  I’ll probably go to the gym more often now.

Quite honestly, this goal is a little bit vague to measure and be actually effective.  So, to make this goal more specific, measurable and make me accountable , I’m revising it to say “my goal is to weigh 80 kilograms by December 31, 2010”.  I only have less than 6 months to go so I better get started right away!  Wish me luck!

 

P.S.  Dear Readers, what financial goals do you have for the year?  How have you made progress on your goals now that the first half of the year has passed?

Do you want to know the money secrets of the rich? Discover these secrets from one of the hottest game these days – Plants Vs Zombies.  This article reveals the money lessons out of this unusually popular game.  If you haven’t played this game, here’s your chance to find out why you should.

These days, my wife is staying out late in the night…not because of work, but from playing plants vs zombies computer game.  I was looking over her shoulder one time and noticed how concentrated she was playing the game.  Curious why she gets overly excited over a simple-looking game, I was intrigued.  While listening to her unravel the mysteries and strategies of the game, I realized there are 5 money secrets that can be learned from this hugely popular game.

Secret #1 – There’s a season for everything

There’s a season for everything.  Just like in the bible, there’s a season of planting and there’s also a season of harvesting.  At the start of the Plants vs Zombies computer game, you have to plant sunflowers.  And when they bear fruit in the form of sunlight (weird huh?) you get points.  The more you plant, the more you can harvest later on.  It’s as simple as that.

Unfortunately, in the real world, we often forget to plant.  We become impatient.  We want the fruits (a.k.a. sunlight) right away.  You want that new car, even if you don’t have any savings and you’ve just started a new job.  You say, no worries.  I can secure a loan anyway.  What’s your “sunlight”?  New house?  New mobile phone?  New LCD TV? 

In the midst of this obsession for chasing these things, we should also keep in mind the most important thing – where’s your plant?  Are you planting seeds that will turn into money machines that will bear fruit and give you money later on? 

Secret #2 – The secret to success is preparation

One time, my wife was complaining to me how she’s so frustrated at a specific stage in the plants vs zombies game.  Apparently, it’s already her nth time repeating that level and she could not get around the zombies.  These creatures always overwhelm her, no matter what she does. 

After some time, I was startled to hear her jubilantly scream “YES! I finally defeated the zombies”.  Without me even asking, she proceeded to tell me how when she gets overwhelmed, she just restarts the game on the same level AND THEN on the next try, she PREPARES way ahead of time.  She plants the necessary flowers and weapons, even before the hoard of zombies come.  So that once they finally come, her plants are more than ready to defend her house by throwing more fruits at the zombies, more fruits than ever thrown at any stage in the game.  Now, it’s the zombies’ turn to get overwhelmed.

While we cannot just restart our real life (that would be like filing for bankruptcy), it’s very important to learn how to PREPARE.  This is the reason insurance and emergency funds are important.  You need to prepare for these things even before you need them.  This is even more evident for life insurance, since the younger you are, the cheaper your premiums will be.  Unfortunately, when you’re young, you are not concerned with life insurance reasoning that you still have a lot of time ahead of you.  You say, that can wait.  But while you’re waiting, the zombies are planning their attack.  Be prepared.

 

Secret #3 – Use leverage

To win the game, you can use different kinds of plants.  Some plants throw only one ball.  Others throw two at a time.  Others don’t throw anything but block the zombies way, delaying time.  Sunflowers, on the other hand, can’t do anything to protect themselves, but they give the most important thing of all – points.  Points to buy the seed for your other plants.

In real life, some people are working their way using only plants with one ball at a time.  That would be like having a job.  Your job can give you money, and scare away some of your zombies (a.k.a. financial problems – like not having any money).  If you have a job, congratulations.  At least you have planted your way to one money machine.

But while having a job helps, it can only throw a ball one at a time.  It’s a slow process.  The richest men in the world, however, own big businesses.  Their plants throw millions or billions of balls at a time.  Take Bill Gates, the billionaire who built one of the biggest software company in the world today – Microsoft.  Or closer to home, you can look up to Henry Sy, the owner of the most successful malls in the Philippines.  They have planted a different kind of money machine – BIG businesses.  

 

Secret #4 – Don’t panic

At every level, you start off really slow.  You plant one sunflower.  Plant another one.  Then your third comes along.  You only need to concentrate on what you can do at the moment.  That is plant more sunflowers to make more money!  Then use more throwing plants to fend off the incoming zombies. 

But once the zombies come in, their faces make you scared.  In real life, zombies do not look like scary creatures.  Often times, they are just unexpected events or people you meet, who forces you to see a better way to live.  So there’s no reason to panic especially if you prepared to the best of your abilities. 

When everything fails, know that it’s ok to restart on the same level.  In real life, this is equivalent to the many lessons you learn about money when you ACT.  When you start your first business, you may find that not a lot of people really need or want the thing you’re offering.  Your business fails.  So when you restart on the same level, like opening up a new business, it would do you good to do market research first to ensure a lot of people would love to buy what you have to offer. 

The most important thing is to just have the bias for action.  Take action.  Even if you fail.  Learn the lesson and try again.  If you fail, restart the game, take a more intelligent action.  Act again and again until you succeed and scream your hearts out to say “Yes! I’ve defeated the zombies!”

 

Secret #5 – Enjoy playing

If you don’t enjoy playing plants vs zombies, do something else.  Play Farmville instead. Or Restaurant City!  Play Cashflow 101.  Get up.  Get running.  Do something. 

In life, if you’re not enjoying what you do, it will all seem like an uphill battle and a huge waste of time.  Are you trapped in a job that you don’t even like?  Are you working 9am – 5pm on something that your heart is not passionate about?  Maybe it’s time to do something else.  Find your passion.  Life is too precious to waste your time doing something you don’t love.

If you’re young, the world is yours.  There’s no better time to be alive.  A lot of opportunities abound for the passionate mind.  Bless the world with your talents.  Help other people with your gifts.  The more people you help, the more the universe will give you what your heart truly desires.

Now, go play!

 

 

P.S.  Do you want to learn how to play the game of money better? Join Bo Sanchez’ Truly Rich Club NOW! >