Month: December 2009

Categories
Life Updates Personal Finance

Happy New Year!

First of all, I’d like to greet you and your family a very Happy New Year! May God’s blessings continue to pour through your life and bring you happiness, love and hope that a more prosperous 2010 awaits ahead!

Second, I’d like to THANK our dear readers and subsribers of Rich Money Habits articles. About 3 months ago, the site akosiallan.com was re-launched as Rich Money Habits – a personal finance website helping people build long term money habits so they can achieve financial freedom with peace of mind. The response has been simply amazing, as the visitors of the site grew to a whopping 300%! Thank you very much for continually inspiring me to bring more helpful, practical and useful money & personal finance articles. Watch out for more interesting articles to help you with your finances this coming year!

Third, I’d also like to thank our friends who are continually inspiring people to learn to make, save, grow and invest their money wisely.  May the coming year bless you more so you can continue to inspire and encourage people to be wiser with their own money.
> Fitz @ Ready To Be Rich
> Jay @ Foreclosure Philippines
> Tyrone @ Millionaire Acts
> Celine @ Frugal Pinoy
> James @ Pinoy Money Talk

Lastly, watch out for more exciting things happening @ Rich Money Habits in 2010 as we create more new ways to help you build rich money habits and live the abundant life.

Again, Happy New Year to you!

God bless,
Allan

Rich Money Habits
https://akosiallan.com

Categories
Life Updates Personal Finance

Merry Christmas!

Merry Christmas everyone!

May you and your family be blessed with the goodness and financial abundance as you celebrate the Holiday season together!

Cheers!
Allan

Categories
Personal Finance Truly Rich Club

Bo Sanchez’s How To Conquer Your Goliaths Book Review

This December, we are going to feature Bo Sanchez’s newest book, How to Conquer Your Goliaths.  Bo Sanchez is a very popular and much sought-after preacher in the Philippines.

 

His new book “How To Conquer Goliaths” contains two parts.  The first part is a creative rendition of the famous story in the bible – the battle between David and Goliath.  The second part contains 7 tips to conquer your own Goliath.

Part 1: A Pebble That Crushed a Mountain (David vs Goliath)

The story is re-told with a little twist similar to a “Lola Basyang” setting where several excited children repeatedly request their “Uncle Kenjo” to tell them the story about the olden days of the battle between David and Goliath.

Reading the story feels like reading a children’s story book.  Bo’s humor is on the spot.  He not only makes reading worthwhile, but for some people (like me) to dream again.  What was it like to be a child?  To be always in wonder?  To surge with excitement over a new story of a very courageous young man named David against a humongous giant named Goliath?  It’s always exciting to be a child.

Part 2: 7 Keys of a Champion’s Life

In the second part of the book, Bo Sanchez outlines the following 7 keys to overcoming your problem that’s preventing you from achieving your dreams.

  1. Follow Your Dream With Passion
    • Find something you’re willing to die for
    • Focus on the dream, NOT the problem
    • Repeat your dreams to yourself over and over again
  2. Focus on Your Core Gift
    • Find out your core gifts & passion
    • Follow your passion and match it with the needs of the market
    • Use your strengths, delegate the rest
  3. Believe in Yourself When Others Don’t
    • Build your confidence by starting small
    • Don’t listen to negative people or those that are not in your target market
    • Seek advise and listen to people who are already living your dream
  4. Build Your Dream Team
    • The #1 desired quality is the ability to work with a wide range of people
    • Recruit people who are better than you
    • Build relationship with your team
  5. Take Action
    • Take the first step in faith. You don’t have the whole staircase. – Martin Luther King Jr.
    • Take bold, massive action
    • See everything as preparation
  6. Fail Forward
    • Learn to fail
    • Be prepared to fail
    • Feel the fear, and fail anyway
  7. Shine Your Light
    • Heal your fear of success
    • Real humility is selfless servanthood
    • Be confident when you shine your light

The book is full of graphic stories to illustrate the key points mentioned above.  These ideas are nothing new.  But I like what Bo Sanchez said that the reason he wants to learn and re-learn the same things over and over again is because he wants to be “reminded” of these ideas once again.

Who should buy this book?  I did! 🙂 It costs PhP 295 (around US $6) at National Bookstore.  I think it is a good read.  And it never fails to inspire.  More than anything, I believe you can get most out of the book if you can pick 1 to 3 gems of ideas that you can readily apply into your life at the moment. 

So, I’ll start with mine.

1) My first Goliath is time.  I got sick the past couple of days…perhaps because of stress at work – working a lot of overtime due to the upcoming holidays….or because of lack of sleep and exercise.  I want to be able to manage my time more so that I don’t feel like I’m always in a hurry.

2) My second Goliath is physical fitness.  Isn’t it obvious I don’t want to be ever sick again?  One thing I miss doing was engaging in sports activities like badminton and basketball.  When I was in Malaysia, I’d always play badminton and basketball every week with friends.  Even though it is a challenge to play those games now, I still want to find a way to take care of my body and be physically healthy.

3) My third Goliath is freedom fund.  I want to be able to choose what I work on, with whom I work it with, and when I want to work.  I have just started learning more about the various financial vehicles that I can grow my money and earn some passive income on.  My goal is to be able to generate enough passive income to cover my monthly expenses.  This is the purpose of my freedom fund.  I am still a long, long way to go.  But there’s no other way to be alive than being inspired to achieve your dreams.

How about you?  What Goliaths are you facing right now? How are you planning to face them to achieve your dreams?

Categories
Life Lessons Personal Finance

How much is your time worth?

The other day I was reflecting on whether it is really all worth it giving up your time for a hefty paycheck.  After all, it does pay the bills…and more.  But if you don’t have time to enjoy any of it, does it really matter whether you have all the money in the world?

Should we just wait for our retirement to be able to enjoy the fruits of our labor?  But you say, “it’s why we have vacations throughout the year!”

Is that really the case?

Tell that to a father who has to give up attending his son’s birthday just to fix an “emergency” situation at the office.

Or to the proud mother who has to miss her daughter’s recital just so she can keep the business going during a “major” software upgrade.

Or to the countless call center agents who are on a “graveyard-shift” struggling to stay awake, feeling like zombies while listening to endless rants and complaints from angry customers on Christmas day!

Over the years, I’ve personally observed how our own personal time is being taken upside down.  There’s no such thing as a vacation anymore. Or even a holiday for that matter.  The dates to celebrate  holidays keep on changing.   Your boss allows you to have a vacation, only if you agree to be “on-call”…which literally means, you can’t go anywhere but within 100 meter radius from the office.  It doesn’t make sense.  It’s depressing, especially for a hardworking office worker who doesn’t have any choice other than quitting the job.

So, who makes the rules?  Who makes a 40-hour workweek, a 45-hour one, or even a 60-hour one?  Who says you can only take holidays only if the business doesn’t need you anymore?

Who decides how you spend your time?

Is it really you?…Or someone else.

Categories
Life Lessons Personal Finance

Multiple Stream of Income

Are you currently earning from multiple streams of income? How many income streams do you currently have?  How many ways does money come to you? 

Some people rely only on their job to earn money.  That’s their only stream of income.  The danger of having only one income source is that once you get fired the money stops and you are forced to find another way to earn money.  This is even more risky during a recession because it is harder to find another job.

Other people earn very high income using their specialized skills.  Doctors, lawyers, dentists, architects, consultants, small business owners earn a lot of money – which is good, but for some, it stops there. 

Most professionals have only one income stream – working using their specialized skill.  If they stop working, the money also stops.  When their skill becomes obsolete, they are forced to accept a reduction in pay to make money.  Or worse, to shift to another profession.

The few who are really rich in both money and time, have a different strategy. They build multiple streams of income.  They earn money through various ways.

For example, really big businesses like the SM malls of Henry Sy not only earn from you when you buy groceries from its SM supermarket, but it also earns income from the stores who are renting their mall space.  That’s creating multiple streams of income.

So what streams of income are available?  In what ways are other people earning residual income today?  Here’s a list of the many types of passive income streams from the book Multiple Streams of Income by Robert G. Allen.

  • Savers earn interest
  • Songwriters earn royalties on their songs
  • Authors earn royalties from their books and tapes
  • Insurance agents get residual business
  • Securities agents get residual sales
  • Network marketers get residual commissions
  • Actors get a piece of the action
  • Entrepreneurs get business profits
  • Franchisors get franchising fees
  • Investors get dividends, interest and appreciation
  • Visual artists get royalties from their creations
  • Software creators get royalties
  • Game designers get royalties
  • Inventors get royalties
  • Partners can get profits
  • Mailing-list owners get rental fees
  • Real estate owners can get cash flow profits
  • Retired persons can get pensions
  • Celebrity endorsers get a percentage of gross profits
  • Marketing consultants get a percentage of profit or gross revenue

Since the list was written about 10 years ago, it obviously doesn’t include how some people are now earning money online through the internet.  If I may add to the list,

  • Some bloggers earn money from every Google Adsense ad clicks on their sites
  • Popular bloggers earn money from paid advertisement on their sites
  • Online retailers earn money selling their stuffs online
  • Giant online retailers earn profits by selling other people’s stuffs online

How about you?  What can you add to the list? What additional income stream are you earning money from today?

Categories
Business Life Lessons Money Mindset Personal Finance

7 Ways to Celebrate Christmas Without Breaking Your Piggy Bank

Christmas is just around the corner.  Many of us are already planning how to spend our vacation.  Some are even singing a tune or two of their favorite Christmas carols.  Christmas in the Philippines is really special.  In fact, the season spans at least 3 months, starting in the early “ber” months of September until the misty dawns of December and even extends until the first few days of January.  What’s with the three kings and all?  🙂

With all the 13th and 14th month pays being given just before the month of December, everyone enjoys his own “extra” jolt of cash.  Suddenly, people have money to spend.  So they spend their money left and right, partying, buying gifts, busily getting into debt through the “easy monthly payments” for the brand new “ultra cool” mobile phone or flat screen TV. These expenses, if not controlled, can cause a strain on your budget even with the sudden influx of cash. Worse, after spending more money than you have, you end up needing to break your piggy bank.

 

Here are 7 ways to Celebrate Christmas Without Breaking Your Piggy Bank

1) Give your time.

Time is indeed gold.  In the world of business, it is an undeniable fact that your time is worth money.  As a contractor or employee, you get paid per hour of you time.  Your business generally earns money as long as it is open, which is also restricted by the time of your employees.  As the world becomes busier by the minute, your ability to give time is becoming more valuable more than ever.  In my opinion, your time is even more valuable than money.

So give your time.  Spend it with your family.  Take a walk.  Play outside the house.  Enjoy some time gardening.  Smell the fresh air.  Your precious time is more valuable than any gift you can ever give them this Christmas season.

2) Decorate your Christmas Tree Together

When I was growing up, we’d always decorate our Christmas tree together.  Most of the time, we’d use indigenous materials as decoration.  We would use white soap for a snow.  We would pick up stones and wrap them up as candies and hung them under the Christmas tree.  One time, we even made a “parol” (star) out of banana stalks.  It was a lot of fun and we didn’t even have to pay a dime. 🙂

3) Sing Christmas carols with your friends

There was a time when me and my friends would go out at night, knock from door to door to sing a Christmas carol or two.  Our neighbors being so kind and gentle would give us coins and gifts.  We enjoyed it so much we even brought our musical instruments along. We had a lyre, a trumpet, drums, and my favorite – a home-made tambourine made out of flattened aluminum caps.  And at the end of it all, we even earned some money from the whole thing.

4) Share stories with old friends

The yuletide season is one of those days where everyone is going to their home town.  It is a great blessing to be able to catch up with your old friends and enjoy the season together.  Long lost high school friends ask who is  already married and who is next in line.  They might even ask you to be the godfather of their own kids. There is something refreshing in meeting up old friends.  With all the stress we endure at work throughout the year, it is a very welcome opportunity to spend some time with those you’ve spent most of your childhood with.

5) Sing and dance to your heart’s content

We Filipinos are a happy people.  We love to sing! We are all singers, even if we cannot carry a single decent tune!  Everyone knows the hottest song on the radio is the Korean hit sensation “Nobody, nobody but you?!” 

We also love to dance.  Why do you think noon time shows are full of dancing from hip-hop, to modern to ethnic dance?…They even have dance contests all year round!

During Christmas, you have an excuse to celebrate.  So sing your favorite song on your videoke!  Dance like crazy! Live life and have fun!

6) Watch the stars

During the whole month of December, the cool winds clear out the clouds so the stars can come out at night!  Watching the glittering stars on a clear night sky is both relaxing and peaceful.  The stars are saying…”settle down…be calm…rest for a while”.

It is one of those rare opportunities to really reflect and reconnect with nature and the universe.  So grab the chance to watch the stars and marvel at the wonders of the world!

7) Give love!

Just like what the popular Christmas carol says…

Give love on Christmas day (Christmas day!)

No greater gift…is there than love.

What the world needs is love!

Yes the world needs your love…

Why don’t you…give love (Repeat Chorus)

Love is priceless. Love is “cheesy”. 

Love other people.  Love your neighbor.  Love your dog.  Love your son.  Love your daughter.  Love your parents.  Love yourself. 

Love is the only thing that grows and comes back to you a million fold when you give it away. 

 

Christmas is a season of celebrating joy and happiness.  Be happy! Smile!  There’s nothing that can take that away from you.  Not working on a night shift on the eve of Christmas day.  Not enduring the very long ride home just to catch your family’s Noche Buena.  Not even your problems on work, money or family. 

You dictate how to celebrate Christmas.  You alone can make it the best day of the year!  You have the power to give, to sing, to dance, to share, to love, to be happy and smile!  You can do all these things…even without breaking your piggy bank.

Categories
Life Lessons Money Mindset Personal Finance

How to save money on drinking water

When my wife and I moved to a new condo a couple of months back, we were having
a hard time looking for a place to buy drinking water.  On the first week, we had to buy a gallon or two of distilled drinking water from the nearby mall.  As some of you might know, distilled water does NOT come cheap. But we had no choice, we HAD to buy the distilled water because we badly needed something to drink! 🙂

After getting fed up of carrying the heavy gallon of distilled water from the mall to our condo, I asked our condo’s receptionist if they know of any water refilling stations nearby who deliver water to the condo.  Fortunately (or unfortunately), they did!

I thought, finally, here’s the solution to my problem.   Much to my dismay, the delivery service from the water refilling station was far from satisfactory.  First, they required us to buy at least 2 “new” water containers.  Second, they could NOT deliver the water on that day…they could only delivery the next day at 7:30 pm.  And lastly, they stopped delivering to us after only refilling the water containers once, saying we should order drinking water from someone else going forward.

So we’re back to square one. 🙁

Then just last week, we finally solved our problem.  We bought a drinking water filter at a nearby Handyman store.  It’s easy to use and install.  It is safe (so far). And, more importantly, we won’t need to buy drinking water, ever again. 🙂

The cost of the water filter is PhP 2,500 – flat.  No extra charges. No recurring monthly/weekly payments. No headaches.

The filter can be cleaned just by wiping it out with a damp cloth or a scrub and washing it on a running tap water.  No need to buy a replacement filter worth PhP 1,000 unless it is broken.

I made some quick calculations at the top of my head to see if the deal makes sense.

Here’s what I figured. My wife and I consume an average of PhP 30 of refilled drinking water every week.  At this rate, we would reach PhP 2,500 pesos after 1 year and 8 months.  That means we would only get our money’s worth after more than one and a half years of using the water filter.  Hardly exciting. 🙂

But what if

  • you are ordering drinking water for your company of 500 people
  • you own a restaurant serving drinking water to your customers
  • you live with your extended family: parents, grandparents, nephews, nieces and other relatives

Imagine the savings you’ll get just by replacing the delivered/purified drinking water by a water filter directly tapped from your faucet.  What if you only get 10% off of what you currently pay for on your drinking water?  That may mean a monthly savings of PhP 30,000 for your company of 500 people.  What if you managed to save 30% instead?  Or 50%?

The possibilities are endless.

How about you?  How do you save money on your drinking water?