Inflation
INFLATION is the rate of increase in prices over a given period of time. As a result of inflation, the purchasing power (value) of money decreases over time. Inflation affects the prices of everything that we buy.
Beyond death and taxes
One thing that is almost certain is change. Change is constant. Nothing is forever the same.
Wrongfully punished
“WRONGFULLY Accused” is a comedy movie starring Leslie Nielsen. It has parodies from many other movies and some series, mostly from “The Fugitive,” “Braveheart” and “Titanic.”
The dispensable
AS employees, it is normal to hear from superiors the statement “No one is indispensable.” In simple words, it means that anyone can become unnecessary anytime and can lose his job. Employees are at the disposal of the employers.
The way of the Chinoys
IT is already the Lunar New Year’s Eve of the Tiger and a lot of Mainland Chinese brave Covid to head to their home. Hopefully, there will be no resulting new pandemic.
Haste to waste
THE year 2022 began on a sour note. The NCR was again back to Alert Level 3 due to the steep rise of Covid cases in a matter of days. From December 24, 2021, with only 80 infections, there was an exponential rise in cases. As of January 10, 2022, the infection reached a high of more than 33,000.
An unstable vehicle
DURING the onset of Covid 19 and lockdown in March last year, two-wheeled vehicle usage surged. Logistics firms provided the needed delivery services by connecting users with drivers on mobile and web applications.
The Family Feud
As of this writing, the year is about to end and to be replaced with a new one. Suddenly a thought occurred. What if it is life that is to end? For sure there is no replacement.
Mastering your money like Bruce Lee
“I fear not the man who has practiced 10,000 kicks once, but I fear the man who has practiced one kick 10,000 times.”
The instruction manual
Every time I buy something, I make it a point to read the instruction manual putting it into operation. By following the manual, I am sure not to make mistake or damage the item I bought. One day during the ECQ (enhanced community quarantine), my mother sought my help in turning on a mobile phone she borrowed from my brother.
It’s yesterday once more
Even since my young age, I was already fascinated by science fiction movies, especially about space and time travel. I have watched many time travel movies like “Timecop” and “Back to the Future,” to name a few.
It’s yesterday once more
Even since my young age, I was already fascinated by science fiction movies, especially about space and time travel. I have watched many time travel movies like Timecop and Back to the Future, to name a few.
Einstein’s Theory
ENCOURAGING someone to start investing at the earliest time possible is not as easy as one may think. Most people have offered so many excuses, and others have the “to see is to believe” mentality.
The ‘bers’ are here
The ghost month is over. It is the month when the traditional Chinese delay making decisions related to money and marriage for fear of bad luck. Everyone can breathe a sigh of relief as the hungry ghosts are back into their lower realm.
The force field
During my childhood, I always looked forward to go home early on a Friday after school only to watch my favorite cartoon movie, Voltes 5. The weekly show was nearing its climax when it was abruptly banned. The story has a good twist but what really caught my fascination was the defense system of Camp Big Falcon. On a heavy attack, Dr. Smith will activate the force field. which acts as a barrier or shield to protect the base from the barrage of missiles sent by the Boazanian beast fighter. The force field served as a protection for the base to prevent it from being destroyed. Once the base is destroyed, Voltes 5 will be easier to destroy as it will always be exposed to enemy attack.
The waiting game
There was once a story about a chess game between two grandmasters. The first played very cautious and boring moves.
Overcoming your fears of money challenges
“The only thing we have to fear is fear itself”–Franklin Roosevelt.
Yin and yang of personal finance
IN the world of martial arts, especially kung fu, the basis is the symbol of the yin and yang. The most famous advocate of this principle is the greatest martial expert to have lived, the late Bruce Lee. Proof of this is in the The Tao of Gung Fu by John Little.
Financial planning lessons from Green Lantern
“In brightest day, in blackest night, No evil shall escape my sight. Let those who worship evil’s might. Beware my power—Green Lantern’s light!”
The thief inside
In school, we were taught that thieves have a bad habit called stealing. That’s why the majority of us grew up wary of thieves. Encountering them is such a nerve-wracking experience. Several years ago, I was walking on my way to work when riding-in-tandem robbers tried to snatch my laptop bag. Sensing it was too light to have a laptop, they let go of my bag and sped away. I was lucky that they did not hurt me. That experience sent shivers down my spine.
How to save and invest in 2018
Some time ago, I received a tempting offer from an organization to talk about losers. At first, it seemed that the message made a lot of sense. After a short ponder, I changed my mind.
The need to invest
Aside from death and taxes, another thing that is certain is change. Change is constant. Nothing is the same forever. One powerful proof is we all get old and there is no stopping time from moving forward. The song “Some Good Things Never Last” show that even in the field of romance, nothing is permanent. As per my personal experience in my former job, I have seen changes in my tenure. From day one, I told myself that I will serve my employer until I reach the age of 60. How would I have known that my retirement at age 46 is dependent on the company’s change of direction? Luckily, I was able to do something earlier that most employees fail to do: I took the risk and decided to invest. As Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg said, “The biggest risk is not taking any risk. In a world that changes really quickly, the only strategy that is guaranteed to fail is not taking risks”.
Lessons learned from Brisbane
In the Battle of Brisbane, Australian challenger Jeff Horn shocked our very own Manny Pacquiao and turned the fight into one of boxing’s greatest upsets. Pacquiao was heavily favored to win, as Horn was handpicked to make Pacquiao look impressive
Five Bruce Lee principles for your financial dreams
Even after his death four decades ago, Bruce Lee’s philosophy still has a great impact not only in martial arts, but also in our financial lives. He was an actor, martial arts guru, philosopher, film director and screenwriter. UFC founder Dana White believed in Bruce’s principle of having no particular style as style, retaining what works and throwing away the useless.
The 10 commandments of personal finance
During the time of Moses, God gave him the 10 Commandments for his people to follow. If the people followed these commandments, then peace will reign.
‘Pokémon Go’
For the past two months, I have noticed people go crazy over a game called “Pokémon Go.” Since I am always busy with my work, I have no time to learn this game, as well as the others before it. All I know is that Pokémon is a virtual character that children enjoy watching. My curiosity got the better of me and I found myself asking children about it, the objective of the game and how it is played. Ever since, I was never a fan of video games, like the Game and Watch, Family Computer, Pacman (P1 per game), and even now I am still not attracted to such games. I just want to know the mechanics of the game for the sake of knowing it. What I learned was very simple. The main objective of Go is to find, capture, train and battle Pokémon. To find them, you need to walk around and they randomly appear in the vicinity on your phone’s map. It should prove a surprise to a lot of people who play this game that they are already being taught financial lessons without them knowing it. This game teaches us the basic principles in wealth creation enumerated below.
Applying Bruce Lee principle in money management
Jeet Kune Do, the way of intercepting fist, was founded by Bruce Lee, undeniably, the greatest martial artist of all time. He was the rising international superstar whose meteoric rise to fame was cut short due to his unexpected death. Luckily, he was able to fulfil his vision, to spread martial arts beyond the borders of China. During his younger years, Bruce studied Wing Chun under Sifu Ip Man and later he explored other forms or martial arts and combined all techniques he learned. He discarded the useless and retained the useful to come up with a nonclassical system that is without form or style and named it Jeet Kune Do.
New Year’s resolution
THE year 2015 is coming to a close. Just like the other years that had come and gone, it will become the past a few days from now. As the year is nearing its imminent end, we will again be encountering the words New Year’s resolution. A lot of people say, “A new year has started again. A new year, a new me.” We get really very excited and start making resolutions for the coming year. The reality is that majority rarely stick to them. If you randomly ask anyone if they remember their resolutions of last year, there is a high probability he or she forgot all about it already.
Newton’s laws
IN science we have heard about Sir Isaac Newton, an English physicist and mathematician, who became famous for figuring up the law of gravity. He is also one of the pillars of calculus, and certain quarters say he is one of the major players in the world’s scientific revolution.
The enemy within
WHEN I watched the movie Heneral Luna, one scene that struck me the most was the one where he said that the enemy is not the Americans but us. When the Americans bought the Philippines from Spain, the Cabinet members of President Emilio Aguinaldo debated about the intention of the new conqueror. On one side was Luna, who foresaw the real intention of the foreigners, and on the other side was one with a hidden selfish agenda. In the end, Luna was killed not by the Americans, but by his own soldiers.
Is there life after debt?
DEBT kills our personal finance.
How to shift from saving to investing
SOME time ago, I received a communication from an organization that talks about “losers.” The firm proclaimed that “savers are losers.” At first blush, it seemed to me that the message made some sense. But after mulling over it, I changed my mind.
Before you say ‘I do’
WHEN a man and a woman tie the knot, they are entering into a lifetime contract that only death can cancel. This means that when they get married, there is no point in turning back. Assuming everything is fine (there is no deception), then the contract is not voidable. After exchanging “I do” to each other, married people cannot just say undo and become single again. That is why a person in a relationship has to think deeply before he decides to sign the contract. Otherwise, he will be having the last “ring” (after engagement and wedding ring) which is lifetime suffering. I have heard of this story from a friend who said that at his wedding day, he got cold feet. But since he cannot back out anymore, he went on and married his longtime girlfriend. The problem is that since day one he wanted out and up to now remains trapped by the decision he made 18 years ago.
Lessons from the Mayweather-Pacquiao fight
THE much-awaited “Fight of the Century” between the two pound-for-pound fighters turned out to be one of the most boring fights in the history of boxing. Mayweather may have been known as the best defensive fighter and what he did can also be applied to our personal finance.
On money velocity
This coming May, our Pambansang Kamao will be facing the toughest test of his career when he meets Mr. Moneyman, Floyd Mayweather Jr., in the fight to determine who is the real pound-for-pound fighter in the world. His opponent is so wily in using his shoulder successfully to defend his face againt hits that the only antidote by Pacman has to use has to be his speed. Speed kills, and it will spell the difference between victory and defeat. It must be remembered that in the 1980s, Sugar Ray Leonard used the same speed in masterfully frustrating and defeating Marvelous Marvin Hagler.
Do you need a bodyguard for protection?
THE Bodyguard is a 1992 American romantic thriller film starring Kevin Costner and the late Whitey Houston. Costner stars as a formed secret service gent who became a hired bodyguard. His services was needed to protect Houston’s character, a music star, from an unknown stalker.
Back to the future
BACK to the Future is a science fiction film trilogy which follow the adventures of time-traveling high-school student Marty McFly and inventor Dr. Emmett Brown, as they travel throughout several time periods in the past (1855 and 1955), present (1985) and future (2015).
Third World country
LAST year saw the Philippines being upgraded by different international rating companies from a debtor to a lender nation. Everybody is happy and the Philippine Stock Exchange index reflected that confidence when the index shot up. People made paper gains out of their investments in the stocks or mutual funds.