John Hero Alfonso Salvador

THERE are many rules of thumb when it comes to personal finance. Different sources (whether books, online articles, or videos) have suggested different “sign post” rules that we can follow to improve our financial situation.

THERE are so numerous initialisms and acronyms we see in digital platforms that we even have to perform an Internet search on what they mean. It is very likely one may have observed a Millennial or a Gen Z mention use the terms “ICYMI,” “AFAIK,” “IIRC,” “ATM,” “SMH,” “IMHO,” “IRL” or “FTW.”

IMAGINE we are playing the game “Bring Me” which is really a hit during children’s parties. The host then says, “Bring me…your pay slips for the last three months!”

WHEN it comes to having a family, we see a trend that the age of marriage or settling down and having the first child through generations (baby boomers onwards) generally increases. There are numerous factors for this trend.

I was able to watch a condensed animated presentation of Bridgewater Associates Founder Raymond Thomas Dalio’s book, “Principles,” narrated by him. The visuals were refreshing and the content was engaging and excellent it got me thinking, “What lessons here can be applied to personal finance?”

WHEN it comes to emergency funds, we already heard few rules of thumb when it comes to its size. The most common rule we hear is that the size of the emergency fund should cover at least 3 months’ to 6 months’ worth of expenses.