The Vicious Cycle of Sandwich Generation

Most of the Filipinos are part of Sandwich Generation. If you are supporting your parents financially while you are providing for your children, you are a truly member of Sandwich Generation. If you are still single, or married without any children yet and you are supporting your parents now, you will be also be part of this generation when you have children. Welcome to the club!

Investopedia defines  sandwich generation as the generation of middle-aged individuals who are pressured to support both aging parents and growing children. The sandwich generation is named so because they are effectively “sandwiched” between the obligation to care for their aging parents – who may be ill, unable to perform various tasks or in need of financial support – and children, who require financial, physical and emotional support.

We can observe that it is a vicious cycle in our country because 63% of Filipinos will  be broke upon reaching the age of 65. Therefore, children have no choice but to support their parents on their old age. In fact, there is a law in our country  that says that we are obliged to support our parents. According to Article 195 of the Family Code, the following persons are obliged to support each other:

• the spouses;
• legitimate ascendants and descendants;
• parents and their legitimate children and the legitimate children of the latter;
• parents and their illegitimate children and the legitimate and illegitimate children of the latters;
• legitimate brothers and sisters, whether of full or half-blood.

I do not find it wrong to support our parents when they get old but for me it is ideal that we should prepare for our expenses when we retire or get old. We do not want our children to be obligated to support us financially. I read an article saying  that “Parents have the obligation to support their children until a certain age, but children do not have any financial obligation to their parents. Parents chose bring you to this world while you did not choose to be born.” It is sweeter if you help your parents out of obligation  but not  because you are being demanded.

It is not too late to get out of this Sandwich Generation by creating a Financial Plan now so that we can prepare financially when we get old.We will no longer be dependent to our children and they can focus on providing for themselves and even start to build their wealth. We do not want to get a share from their income because we are prepared financially when we retire.

Let me share with you helpful ideas to prepare for your retirement so that you will not ask money from your children and let your family get out of Sandwich Generation:

• Start your Retirement Plan as soon as possible. You need to complement your SSS/GSIS when you retire because it will not be enough.
• Prioritise saving money than spending. Set a budget and follow it.
• Invest consistently for long-term for your financial goals in the future. Learn to invest in Stocks, Pooled Funds, Money Market, Bonds, and Real Estate.
• Get your health insurance that will cover you long term if dread disease happens.
• Get proper coverage of Life Insurance.
• Learn to create another source of income aside from your job or start a business.
• Learn to increase your Financial Literacy by reading books, attending seminars, watching educational videos and talk to Financial Planners.

Sandwich Generation is a tough situation that is why we need to get out of it by taking actions today  while we are young and earning well. It is good that we need to create a Financial Plan that will give us income when we get old. If we do not plan today, our children will suffer and then it will go down to our grandchildren and it will be a vicious cycle and none of our family members down the road will achieve financial independence. You are responsible to all your actions that you do today for what life you will have in the future. It is way better that even if you are retired and old, you can still provide for your family and not the other way around. The holy bible tells us about this principle as well as it is written at 2 Corinthians 12:14, it says: “Now I am coming to you for the third time, and I will not be a burden to you. I don’t want what you have–I want you. After all, children don’t provide for their parents. Rather, parents provide for their children.“

Thank you very much for reading my blog.

Archie M. Yuki

Financial Planner, Certified Investment Consultant and Insurance Specialist

4th floor Karina Bldg., No. 33 Shaw Blvd. Pasig City

Tel No. 571-3274

Mobile Number. 0917-5769607, 0923-4941362

https://www.facebook.com/learnfinancialplanning/

 

References:

http://www.investopedia.com/terms/s/sandwichgeneration.asp#ixzz4pK6wWXUk

http://www.philstar.com/health-and-family/2017/05/03/1696041/it-right-parents-demand-support-their-children-exchange-raising

http://www.juicyretirement.com/2017/07/25/feeling-squished-its-sandwich-generation-month/

How far can your daily Ph100 go in the Stock Market?

 

My Punk Rock Personal Finance Habits

I was born poor and life for me was not easy. My father is from Bicol and my mother is from the Visayas. They met in a bag factory in Angono,Rizal. My father lost his job when he was like 55 years old because the factory he was working at closed down and my mother did not work since they got married. It was a very difficult situation for my brother and my three sisters because we struggled financially. Luckily, I had a punk rock attitude. Punk is a mentality. It is represented by one who does not swallow outright what people tell them or people normally do. Just like punk rock music that I can relate to my attitude on how I practice personal finance.

I never had qualms about working hard. I had to do odd jobs before just to save money while studying in UP. I had jobs like a bagger in a grocery store, store assistant in a video shop, and a waiter in a Hotel. I’m blessed that my family and relatives supported me during those times to finish my studies.  I am thankful because of that  experience, I realized the value of personal finance so that I will not be forever poor in my entire life. As Bill Gates say, if you were born poor,it is not your mistake,but if you die poor,it is your mistake.

Let me share with you some Punk Rock Personal Finance Habits that I practice that I believe can benefit you as well. (Warning: Some of these habits not be for you.)

1. Pay your debts as fast as you can.
2.Do not borrow money to buy things just to impress other people or just to be in. Keeping up with the Joneses is a big bullshit.
3. Cut your credit cards if you plan to pay it in installment. It is a negative compounding interest.
4. Buy more assets than liabilities.
5. Learn to save first before you spend. Do not just save and then you will spend it all afterwards. Set goals for short term, mid term and long term needs. Know your reasons why you need to save.
6. Do not buy things that are not well thought of. Practice delayed gratification.
7. Learn to say “No” to unnecessary expenses that your relatives, friends or officemates offer you. Example: Unplanned activities like travel, dining out, drinking,partying and et cetera.
8. Give up vices like drinking alcohol and smoking. If you cannot quit, minimize it. You can be healthier and you can save money.
9. Bring packed food at work as much as possible.
10. Look for a clean carinderia near from your office rather than buy food from fast food restaurant.
11. If you plan to get into a relationship,look for someone who knows how to save money. If you are already in a relationship to someone who does not save money, you need to change your BF/GF soon.
12. Learn to allocate your income into different categories, use clear book to allocate it. Ex: Savings,Insurance,Investment, Grocery,Tuition Fees, Transportation/Gas Expenses,Loans, Giving, et cetera.
13. Change your money to hundreds from your favorite bank so that you will not be tempted to buy something just to break down your Ph1,000 and you can easily allocate your funds.
14. Practice charity. Help your church or help someone in need.
15. Have an emergency fund. Have at least 6 months of your monthly salary and open a bank account for it.
16. Get life insurance so if death comes your family will be financially stable without you.
17. Get health cards so that if you will get sick you will not have to shell out cash.
18. Get dread disease insurance for you to be protected from Cancer, Heart Attack, Diabetes which you will need money if these dread diseases happen to you.
19. Insure your non-life assets like your car/s and properties.
20. Minimize taking a cab or uber/grab. If it will not cause you harm, use Jeepney,MRT,LRT,Bus going to work. Leave early from your house to go to work so that you will not be in a hurry and you will not take the cab.
21. Learn to invest be it in stocks,pooled funds,bonds,money markets and real estate. Make it a habit to invest.
22. Do  not believe everything you see in social media about seemingly successful life of people, you might not know that they are full of debts already. You will be tempted to copy their lifestyle but your budget will not allow it.Fake news are everywhere,  how much more fake people.
23. Buy sale items.
24. Live within your daily budget. Let us say your allowance is Ph200 a day,do not overspend.
25. Learn to enjoy your income as well but not splurging. You set a budget for it like dining out,vacation, travel and many more.
26. Pratice Kurot Principle. If you want to buy worth Ph40k cellphone, you should have earned at least 400k.
27. Read books,attend seminars, talk to professionals  and study about Personal Finance.
28. Choose your friends wisely. Avoid people who are pessimistic, spender, and do not take actions of their goals in life.
29. Learn to have extra income aside from your job. Learn to sell. Do multiple sources of income either active income or passive income.
30. Pray for the success of other people.

It does not matter if how much you earn but it is how much you can save and invest.  I do not care if people will think of me as so frugal but what is important for me is my financial goals for my family.If I will not practice Personal Finance now, most likely I will be part of the 63% of Filipinos who will be broke at age 60 and I do not want that. Majority of people will not do Financial Planning that is why we need to change our attitude when it comes to handling our finances.

I do like to live a simple life that I do not want to lease my lifestyle today just to look glamorous for other people. I do not want to pretend that I only look rich but I do not have savings, life insurance and investments. It is priceless for me to have a peace of mind that I do not have any worries about paying bills for the things that I borrowed from the bank which are unplanned. What is important for me is even though I am not earning big yet but I can manage it to grow because of these habits. I look forward that you also practice some of my Punk Rock Personal Finance Habits and we will be part of the Filipinos will achieve Financial Independence in the future.

 

 

Archie M. Yuki

Financial Planner,Investment Consultant and Insurance Specialist

4th floor Karina Bldg., No. 33 Shaw Blvd. Pasig City

Tel No. 571-3274

Mobile Number. 0917-5769607, 0923-4941362

https://www.facebook.com/learnfinancialplanning/

Email Address: archieyuki30@gmail.com

 

 

Reference:

http://danawilliams2.tripod.com/punk.html

Life Insurance Can Preserve Your Assets if Death Comes

 

Many of us think that life insurance is not important. In  fact, Philippines has only 1.75% penetration rate of life insurance. Penetration rates calculated  as the ratio of total gross premiums over gross domestic product. It means that few Filipinos are insured and most of us are under insured. You may ask yourself and look around with your loved ones, friends and relatives, and you will see that most of us do not have life insurance. Life insurance has many benefits. It can cover a person if risks of life happen like illness, disability, old age and death. With regard to this writing, I will share with you how life insurance can preserve your assets if death comes in the future.

We all work hard for our family to have a better life and along the way, we can accumulate assets like having your own house and lot, condo units, cars, motorcyles, savings in the bank, stock market shares, businesses, jewelry, your expensive collections, and many more. While having these assets named for you and if death comes, your assets will not be easily transferred to your heirs. Your family needs to settle the Estate Tax which the government will surely take before your heirs can get their shares of your assets. Two  things are inevitable in life, these are Death and Taxes. If you will not prepare, it will be a burden to your family.

Estate Tax has its different rates depending on your Net Estate:

 

How to compute the Estate Tax that your heirs will need to pay in the Philippine government if death comes?

Let’s say that a person has Ph15,000,000 Net Estate. This is how your heir needs to prepare to settle the Estate Tax so that your assets will be transferred to them.

You can see that Ph15,000,000 is on the bracket of over Ph10,000,000 therefore the tax will be Ph1,215,000.00 plus 20% of the excess over of Ph10,000,000. The excess will be Ph5,000,000 and the 20% of that is Ph1,000,000. Therefore the total Estate Tax that the heirs should pay is Ph2,215,000(Ph1,215,000 + Ph1,000,000). Before the heirs can get the Net Estate of Ph15,000,000 they need to settle first Ph2,215,000. What if all of his money is in the banks which the heirs cannot withdraw? Money in the bank is frozen if the owner dies, it can be withdrawn only after the estate tax is settled.  It will be a big problem for the heirs to come up right away with that amount because if they will not settle the Estate Tax after a period of time, it will have a penalty and worst if the heir cannot settle the Estate Tax, the government can own the assets.

Life insurance can address the Estate Tax because it is not taxable as long as it is designated as irrevocable beneficiary. It can preserve your assets in the future. In the computation, the heirs should have at least Ph2,215,000 ready cash if death comes in the future of the owner of the assets for the heirs to transfer the net estate to them.

For you to preserve your assets,the owner of the assets can insure himself now at least Ph2,215,000 to prepare for the estate tax if death comes soon or in the future. He just needs to set aside every year of 5%-10% of his income for him to get a life insurance coverage for him to have funds that can be given to his beneficiary if death comes.

Here how it goes if the owner of the assets did not have life insurance:

Here how it goes if the owner has a proper life insurance coverage just to pay for the Estate Tax if death comes:

It clearly shows that by insuring yourself properly, your family that you will be leaving if death comes will not have any problem on paying the Estate Tax. It is way cheaper and you can save more money if you insure yourself properly. You can imagine if the owner dies without life insurance, where would the family get the Ph2,215,000 to pay for the estate tax because all of the assets are being frozen,even if they have money in the bank, they cannot just withdraw it without paying the Estate Tax first. Even if they have money which is not owned by the person who died, it will be still a burden to pay for the Estate Tax. As seen in the sample computation, Ph2,215,000 is not a small amount of money.  It is wiser to prepare as well for the Estate Tax by creating a fund that will give your family the money that they will need on the time that they need it most which life insurance can provide.

Thanks for reading my blog. If you want to learn more about the benefits of life insurance on Estate Tax preparation, you may reach me.

 

Reference: http://www.philstar.com/business/2017/01/18/1663599/faster-growth-expected-insurance-sector-year

 

 

Archie M. Yuki

Financial Adviser,Investment Consultant and Insurance Specialist

4th floor Karina Bldg., No. 33 Shaw Blvd. Pasig City

Tel No. 571-3274

Mobile Number. 0917-5769607, 0923-4941362

https://www.facebook.com/learnfinancialplanning/

Email Address: archieyuki30@gmail.com

Parkinson’s Law:The reason why we fail to save money.

 

Few years ago or many years ago, when you just started working,your income was small. You survived on that level of income and you thought that your salary was not enough that was why you did not save money. But today,your income is higher but it is impossible for you to save still. The reason for this is because you are under the Parkinson’s Law. It is a law that states that the work expands so as to fill the time available for its completion.  So, if you will rephrase the law, it says: The expenses expand so as to fill the unnecessary wants to spend all the incremental salary instead of saving it. While you income is increasing, your spending will increase as well but you fail to save money for you to use for your future expenses. Instead, you get yourself into building more liabilities than assets and you start believing that it is impossible to save money.

Saving money is behavioural. It is how you set your mind to prioritize your saving money first before you spend. If you think your salary is small, you can still set aside some of it, if you want to. It is not about when you earn bigger, that’s the time that you will start to save. You should start right away, when you got your first job.  Saving should be always part of your budget because you need to pay yourself as well. When you spend all your income, you are paying other people first. Your priorities will be your bills that you have to pay every month which you will not benefit in the long run. You will make other people rich but not yourself that is why Meralco, SM, Petron, Globe and other big companies are getting richer because for sure we need to pay them. We never pay ourselves as well through saving. Ideally, you should set aside from 10%-20% of your income. If you are not comfortable yet setting aside 20% of your salary because you have so many liabilities,you can start with 10% savings. If you think that 10% is still big,try 8%,if not,try 5%. The important thing about this is creating a habit,start where you are most comfortable. Even though, you start saving small at first and gradually, you can increase the saving percentage of your income in the near future. From 5% saving percentage, you can now save 20% of your income.

We have to break the Parkinson’s Law for us to save effectively. Everytime that your salary increases or if you have bonuses,make it a habit that you have to save 50% of it right away and use the 50% to other things that you like to add to your lifestyle. You need to allocate your income for you to have directions where your money should go. Practice to increase your savings rather than increasing your expenses when your income goes up. Always use this formula: Income-Savings= Expenses, rather than Income- Expenses= Savings.

Building your savings will be your muscle for you to start to become Financially Independent. You can now grow your money through investing and protect your income as well because we are not going to work for the rest of our lives. Saving should not be the only goal but it is the foundation for you to achieve your financial goals in life. Breaking the Parkinson’s Law will benefit you for you to be effective and efficient in handling your finances. Let’s beat the Parkinson’s Law.

Let’s all be financially free!

 

Archie M. Yuki

Financial Adviser,Investment Consultant and Insurance Specialist

4th floor Karina Bldg., No. 33 Shaw Blvd. Pasig City

Tel No. 571-3274

Mobile Number. 0917-5769607, 0923-4941362

https://www.facebook.com/learnfinancialplanning/

Email Address: archieyuki30@gmail.com

Invest with Goals

 

It is important that you have to know your goals when you invest. With goals in mind,you will work for it until you achieve  it. Achieving financial goals for your yourself and your family are something that we look forward to, that is why we work hard for it. Investing your money can help you to achieve your financial goals in the future because your money can work for you.

I’m a big fan of investing in Stock Market particularly investing long term which you will win. In stock market, you can position your financial goals for you to achieve it and it is possible. You just have to know what you would like to achieve when you invest in Stock Market be it your Retirement Fund,Travel Fund, Business Fund and etc. Your goal should be SMART(Specific,Measureable,Attainable,Realistic and Attainable) for you to work it out.

Let’s say you set a goal of achieving a college Fund for your child after 10 years and you want him to study in a good school. Let’s assume that you need Ph1,000,000 on the 10th year for your child to finish a 4-year course. Wow! Ph1M for a child to graduate? Yes it is, this is a conservative assumption only after 10 years because of inflation or the rise of the price. Assuming that every year the tuition fees will increase on the average of 10% per year. I have not included yet the transportation allowance,books, allowance, food , load allowance, load, laptops, etc.

If you save money in the bank for you to reach Ph1M after 10 years, you have to set aside ideally Ph100,000 per year but if you invest in Stock market for you to reach Ph1M on the 10th year on the assumption that it earns 8% per year on peso cost averaging, you will only save Ph70,000 per year or Ph17,500 per quarter you can have Ph,1,014,059.37.But if you save Ph70,000 per year in the bank, your money will be only Ph733,112.88.

See illustration:

Now, which one can help you to save more money and earn you more money for your future financial goals? Definitely,you will win in investing. Now, what if in investing in stock market gives you an average annual return of 14% which had happened in the last 10 years? You can achieve more than Ph1M which you can use for other expenses for your child’s education.

Your goal should be clear for you to work it out. You should understand the reason why you are investing in the first place that is why you are willing to sacrifice something now for you to gain more in the future. Even though the stock market goes up and down, you will still to invest consistently because you are after the long term benefit. You need also to to talk to a Financial Planner to guide you if which kind of investment fits you for you to achieve your financial goals in the future. As they say, a goal without a plan is just a wish.

Thank you for reading my blog, I hope that you learned something today. Let’s start to invest with goals.

 

 

Archie Yuki

Financial Planner, Certified Investment Solicitor

4th floor Karina Bldg., No. 33 Shaw Blvd. Pasig City

Tel No. 571-3274

Mobile Number. 0917-5769607, 0923-4941362

https://www.facebook.com/learnfinancialplanning/

Email Address: archieyuki30@gmail.com

You do not need Life Insurance

YOU DO NOT NEED LIFE INSURANCE

Yes! You are right, you do not need life insurance. Life insurance should not be part of your financial portfolio. You do not have to worry about the billing statement of the life insurance companies send you. You do not have to set aside a small amount of your income for the premiums of your life insurance because those are only expenses. You do not need to check if you are properly insured or not to a Financial Planner. I would like to share with you the three reasons that you do not need life insurance, I hope that I can convince you that you do not need it.

These are the 3 reasons why you do not need life insurance:

1. If you are immortal,you don’t need life insurance. You don’t have to worry about dying because even if you will have a tragic accident, it is okay because you will not get hurt and can still get out alive.

2. If you do not have dependents who rely to you financially, it is okay not to have a life insurance. At least,you have to be ready to secure a budget that you can give in advance to someone for your funeral services or land to buy where you can be buried.

3. If you will not get sick for the rest of your life, you do not need life insurance.  I want to talk to you to know how not to get sick ever.

With these three reasons, you don’t need life insurance ever.  But if you don’t have these all three reasons,you surely need to get a life insurance. Life insurance should be part of your financial portfolio for you to be protected while working hard to achieve your goals for yourself and for your love ones. If you can set aside a budget for your daily expenses,you also have to set aside a budget for your life insurance.  Life insurance gives you a peace of mind if risks of life happen like Death, Illness and Disability that prevent you from earning money.

Do you know that as low as Ph67 per day you can start already to insure yourself? Yes, you can start with that amount.

Here are the sample details:

Age: 29

Premium: Ph67 per day or Ph2,000 per month

Life Insurance Coverage: Ph500,000

Dread Disease Rider: Ph500,000

Here is the illustration:

Getting your own life insurance is not that expensive, you can start as low as Ph67 per day and you can be insured already. From this illustration, you will just have to save for 10 years for your life insurance and the money that you put in for 10 years will give you a life insurance coverage of Ph500,000 until age 99. Now, the exciting part here is the money that you put in for your life insurance will grow overtime. You can withdraw this money partially at least after 10 years so that your  life insurance can still be active. If you will not withdraw, if the money earns 10% per year, at age 60, you would have Ph1,928,450.95 already which you can use for your retirement years. If death comes in the future, your beneficiary will get the the death benefit of Ph500,000 plus the amount of the fund value.

Let us say, the policy holder passes away at age 40 and if the fund value earns 10% which is Ph346,616.49, the death benefit that the beneficiaries will receive the Ph500,000 Death benefit plus the fund value which in total of Ph846,616.49 which will be tax-free if the beneficiary is irrevocable designation.

Now, this just never ends here. It has a Dread Disease Fund of Ph500,000 that can cover dread disease if it happens. After 30 days of diagnosis of any of the dread disease that is covered, the policyholder can get the Ph500,000 to use for medical treatment and his life insurance and his fund value are still intact.

Here is the detail of the Dread Disease Rider:

Knowing the benefits of Life Insurance, it is wiser to insure yourself so that you can protect yourself and your family. I believe that Life Insurance should be called Love Insurance because it is not about dying or getting sick but is about your love ones who will be taken care of if the time comes that you can no longer provide for them. Now, the question is do you need life insurance or not? I believe that it is important that you protect yourself before anything else because you are the money making machine that provides to your family, without you, your  family will be greatly affected.

Thanks for reading my blog.

Let’s all aspire to become Financial Independent Filipinos. Be Free!

Archie M. Yuki

Financial Planner,Investment Consultant and Insurance Specialist

4th floor Karina Bldg., No. 33 Shaw Blvd. Pasig City

Tel No. 571-3274

Mobile Number. 0917-5769607, 0923-4941362

https://www.facebook.com/learnfinancialplanning/

Email Address: archieyuki30@gmail.com

Invest in Yourself

As a Financial Literacy Advocate, I always teach to invest in yourself first for you to acquire knowledge and that knowledge will give you the best returns in your life. In our times, information is really fast and sometimes we cannot really understand what are the things that will really benefit us particularly in Personal Finance. Most of the time if you are not careful about deciding how to do with your hard-earned money, you will fall into quick rich-schemes which promise high returns and guarantees with a very low risk. This can be a tragedy to a person who works hard to earn his money and turned out that he will lose it all because of not investing to himself first.

There are so many professionals that you can talk to guide you without any biases and can really guide you the complete approach when it comes to your Personal Finance needs. It is important that you study first what to do if you want to start to create a Financial Plan. You deserve to know all the things that you have to know when you create a Financial Plan in a holistic way.

I recently met Mr. Peter Yung,AFP  and I was in awe with him because he shared many things about Financial Planning. He told me that every person has different needs and therefore it requires different solutions as well for their personal finance. I totally agree with him so that the person can get the best fit financial plan for the circumstance of his/her life. A Financial Planner should understand what the client needs from now to the future needs of the client. His business is also in Financial Planning but he is an independent Financial Planner. The advantage of this is you can get an advise from him without any bias. It means that he can advise you  the best Financial Plan that you really need not because of he is representing a particular company. I think this idea is way better than being pushed by a seller who really needs a commission from you.

You may check his company if you need to learn about Financial Planning and he can help you to choose the best financial plan for yourself and for your family. You can get a consultation from them. You may check their website at

http://www.vanguardph.com/

I got this from their page about Financial Planning:

http://www.vanguardph.com/financial-planning/

The wisest thing to do is to invest in yourself first to know what is the best Financial Plan for you and don’t just settle for the things that you do not totally understand before you jump into investing. Make it a habit to read books, blogs, attend seminars about Personal Finance so that you can maximize the learnings  and you can use it for you to become Financially Literate and reap the benefits in the future.

I hope that you learn something about investing in yourself first!

I hope  that we all achieve our Financial goals for ourselves and for our love ones.

God bless Philippines!

.

Archie M. Yuki

Financial Planner,Investment Consultant and Insurance Specialist

4th floor Karina Bldg., No. 33 Shaw Blvd. Pasig City

Tel No. 571-3274

Mobile Number. 0917-5769607, 0923-4941362

https://www.facebook.com/learnfinancialplanning/

Email Address: archieyuki30@gmail.com

 

 

 

Personal Finance

There was a story about a company driver who earned his salary every Saturday. But every Wednesday afternoon he got his salary in advance and it had been a habit. His boss wanted to know if what would happen if he gave an advance salary on Wednesday and he would still give him a complete salary on Saturday. The boss did it, the driver was really happy because as if he just got a bonus  because he got his salary in advance and and he would receive the full salary still on Saturday. After one week, Wednesday came and the boss was waiting if his driver would still request an advance of his salary and luckily the driver did not. The boss was happy because the driver did not need get his salary in advance but came Thursday afternoon the driver requested an advance of his salary again. He was back again from his old behaviour that he cannot manage his finances even though he had a surplus.

If we don’t have a discipline in handling our finances, making more will not help. The Bible says at Luke 16:10, “If you are faithful in little things,you will be honest in big things.But if you are dishonest in little things, you won’t be honest in greater responsibilities”. It is easier said and done. We always hear that we have to save and invest but even a lot of us know it already yet we still do not do it.  You can see a lot of posts in Social Media about saving and investing but less than 1% of Filipinos only invest in Philippine Stock Market. According to statistics, 63% of the Filipinos will be broke upon retirement that is why Personal Finance is important to practice.

What is a Personal Finance?

Here are my suggestions to have a good behaviour about personal finance: