PMC Thought #12 Desire

Okay,  This is still not about the Richest Man in Babylon.  Sorry about that promise.

I just can't let go of this thought that I have to write about it, so, please bear with me.


Everything must have started from something, right?  And let us call that "something" with a very simple and plain word.  Let's call it "desire" for the lack of more appropriate word.  

Like anything else, our goal to be part of the Pinoy Millionaires Circle should be backed by desire - firm and strong desire.

Whether it is to be successful in your life, in your career or to be financially free (which we advocate here),  the first step is to desire to be one.  It is the desire that will drive us to that destination.  It is the fuel that will make our motors run.

If only we will hold on to that dream, stand firm to our goals and re-fuel that desire, we may be shaken by trials and tests but, we will not crumble.  

Our first series was about the Heart of Success where we talked about the more important things other than being successful. There we established the right mindset while we are reaching for our goals. The next series, as promised, will talk about how to take care of our personal finances.  This is where I am particularly excited because this is something that I've always wanted to do.  Something that I truly desire. Why? Because no matter what we read or hear from other people about how great the economy is, no matter how good or great our bosses or companies are, we are the ones who will remain to be ultimately responsible for our own finances.

Accountant by profession, my circle of friends and acquaintances are the people within the same profession.  And here's what I've realized.  Most accountants are so good in finances, that of their clients or their employers, but not of their own. Many are living on credit cards or paychecks to paychecks. Many are living the good life, eating great foods and dining on fancy restaurants, but deep inside, debts are consuming them.  They are so good with other peoples' finances but they become ignorant when it comes to their own.

Now, it is my desire to share to more people the things that I've been learning.  That is my desire.

If we want to achieve more or get some place higher, what we need is a burning desire.  I will tell you more about it in the succeeding articles.  For now, let me again disturb your thoughts.  Are your desires enough to last forever or at least until you reach your goals?

Be More and Live More.

PMC Thought # 11: Philippine Stock Market - To Invest or Not to Invest

Our last article promised that from this point forward we will be discussing the principles contained in the book “The Richest Man in Babylon.”  However, because of the length of that would-be-series, I opted to simply answer one of my dearest friends’ question. 

Last week, this friend of mine asked:  Can you invest in the stock market without attending any seminar?  Which stocks are good to buy?

I was shocked!  Why would she ask me about such things? I’m not a financial expert.  But I answered her questions as far as my limited understanding of the stock market could reach.  And then I promised her that I will send her an email so I can share her what I know. 

While I was thinking of fulfilling my promise, I thought, “Hey!  Why don’t I just post here my supposed email to her?  That way, more people will see and hopefully learn too.”

So here are my answers to her questions. 

1.       Can you invest in the stock market without attending any seminar?  The answer is Yes.  Seminars are not required before someone can participate in the stock market.  I know of people who have been in the stock market for a long time but haven't attended any seminar.  But if I were you, I would grab every opportunity to learn first before I venture into the stock market.  A little research in the internet will even lead you to some free seminars that companies may offer.  You will be surprised with how much you can learn.  I know of an online stock broker who provides free seminars on investing in the stock market.  Spending a little of your time to learn a few new things can go a long way.  Tip:  Don’t do this at work, dangerous.

2.       Which stocks are good to buy?  My initial response was, “It depends.  Are you gonna be a trader or an investor?”   Honestly, there are no best stocks. 

In a stock market as young and active and volatile as the Philippines’ who would be able to say which stocks are good and which are not?  Just a few weeks ago, the entire country was “hooray-ing” for the all time high records being achieved day by day at the Philippine Stock Exchange.  International business news channels and other media were talking about the Philippines.  But today (June 25, 2013), the PSEi closed at 5,789.  I couldn’t even remember when was the last time it was that low.  So, selecting the best stocks requires a lot of analyses and understanding.  It will always boil down to whether you are going to be a trader or an investor.  Traders look for the short-term.  Investors will be there for the long term.  Which of the two are you? Tip:  If you will be an investor, there are lots of good companies to take part in.

What’s your “WHY”

Perhaps the more important question to ask is "why."  Like all other decisions, whether in our professional or in our personal lives, the first thing we should ask ourselves is the “Why” of things we do.  Ask yourself if your “why” would be worth the time, the money and the efforts that you will be investing for it.  Your why will be the foundation of the succeeding actions and decisions that you will take.  So make sure it is founded on something solid and unshakable.  Remember the two man who built their houses - one built it with the sand as the foundation and the other built it on solid rocks?  You know the rest of the story; Jesus has been telling that to the world for more than 2,000 years. 

If you know your whys; the how, what, where and when will come in handy. 

Investing in the stock market is very exciting.  In a short period that I am studying it, I realized that it is not for the faint of heart.  One day it’s up, the next day it’s down.  Or with what we are experiencing right now, the Cebuana used to say, “it’s like gravity has also been pulling the stock prices down.”

In the stock market, the question is not how much are you expecting to gain.  The question is how much losses can you handle.  If you can’t stand the sight of your portfolio getting all red (I say “red” because it is the color of decline), you may want to reconsider other options. Stock investing is not for everyone unless you are willing to learn. 

Disclaimer: I am still a student trying to learn the ins and outs of investing in the stock market. Or should I say, taking part in the ownership of giant companies.  I wish you could join me in this new and exciting endeavor. 

P.S.  Whatever your aspirations may be or your chosen path to financial freedom is, always remember that as a PMCer, our goal is to be millionaires for reasons higher and more noble than the money we could amass; it's all about the lives we could change.

PMC Thought #10 - The Richest Man in Babylon

A year ago, I bought a book entitled "The Richest Man in Babylon" by George S. Clason.  This classical book on personal finance was written in the 1920s.

I have finished reading it already many months ago.  But, honestly, I almost forgot what I've learned.  Makes me think that what I've read and the time I've spent were just wasted.  I read and did not understand.

So, Dear PMCers, I promise to re-read it and share with you bits and knowledge of information that I hope will be helpful for all of us in achieving our dreams.

Some of the info that we will be writing about includes:

>  Cures for a lean purse
>  Laws of gold
>  and many others.

This book is rich with timeless lessons on personal finance that's why I cannot tell you how long it will take us to complete this new series.  But just the same, I urge you to stay with me. Write your comments and share your thoughts.

If you think, as we progress, that you will learn more from the book it self.  Please do yourself a favor.  Find or buy the book.  If you can't afford it, borrow it from someone you know.

So until our next PMC Thought....

P.S.  Always remember that our road to being millionaires starts first with having the right knowledge.  PMCers, keep that discipline to BE MORE and LIVE MORE.  

PMC Thought #9: Heart of Success' Law No. 7: Don't Settle for Success; Make a Difference - Strive for Significance

It's been a long time since the last part of the heart of success has been written in these pages. We've come to the part where I, as a reader, would say that's worth the money spent for the book.

Because of the significance of the last law, I wouldn't be giving it much justice if I would have to say it in my own words.  So let me share with you the stories that Rob Parsons wrote in the last part of his work.

For Parsons, the world has truly advanced in the past few years, and with the fast-phased world we are living, life has seems to be getting shorter.

The British Businessman
Parsons relayed the story of a successful British businessman who once invited him for a short break in the man's Mediterranean villa. The businessman was just about forty years of age but already helped build a multi-million pound business.  The villa was so large, the guests would often got lost. One morning, over a cup of coffee, the businessman told something that surprised Parsons.  "It's not enough," he said.  "People think that when you have it all, you really do have it all.  But you don't." Then he told Parsons a life-changing experience.  The man was diagnosed with a life-threatening illness.  The businessman then said, "...on that autumn day in a London hospital, I realized, for the first time in my life, that even if I recovered from my present illness, it was only a respite - one day I was going to die.  What I really crave now is not success - I have that.... I want to make a difference."

"If you and I are to discover the heart and soul of success it may be wise not just to consider the 'now' but to try to imagine life some years down the road," Parsons said.  When we are younger, the rules are clear - to get to the top, to have that parking space marked "Director" and for people to say, "That's a successful man."  But as we grow older, we long for more than success, we want to be seen as someone significant.

A Mistake that Changed a Man's Life Forever
And Parsons said that it is not too late, no matter how old we are.  Then, he relayed the story of Alfred Nobel.  Nobel, in 1867, patented his 'dynamite.' Soon after, he amassed significant fortune and had patents in almost all industrialized country.  But one day, a simple mistake changed Alfred's life forever.  The death of his brother was mistaken as his.  It was an experience most of us may never have.  He got to read his obituaries.  From there he learned the people called him "merchant of death" and a man whose "fortune was amassed finding new ways to mutilate and kill." From that day, Alfred Nobel vowed that that was not the way he wanted to be remembered.  He then begun using his wealth to promote arts, science and peace.  And the rest is history.

The Dustman
Parsons shared his own experience with success and significance through his experience with their dustman - Ron.  Ron is a homeless man who's been living with the Parsons even before they have their first child.  By the time Ron moved in to the Parsons, Rob was promoted as partner in his legal practice. As an incentive, he was given a Mercedes Benz.  Parsons wanted to show-off and impress somebody, and that somebody, Parsons chose, was Ron.   Parsons then relayed the incidents that followed.  "As he fastened his seat belt and gazed around in wonder," Parsons said, "I explained, 'It's called a Mercedes Benz, Ron.'"  "I put one finger on the steering wheel and move it effortlessly" Parsons continued.  "Ron seemed impressed.  'It's called  power-assisted steering,'" he said. "Yes, Rob, I know.  We have it on the dustcarts," replied Ron.

I can't imagine how Parsons' self-thought success turned into humiliation at that instance.

According to Parsons, Ron used to be homeless but now spends some of his spare time with the soup run in the city center.  One day he went home wearing old shoes.  When asked where were his new shoes, he just said he gave it to somebody and that he will just save for another pair.

Take time to think
Parsons then shared this piece of advice about taking time to think. "If you are lucky enough to have a few seconds when a phone is not demanding to be answered or a moment when someone is not knocking on your office door asking you to 'spare a minute,' then nurture that brief episode. If you're in an airport lounge, don't feel under pressure to get straight to your mobile or to fish some papers out of your briefcase, don't even feel the need to look busy.  Instead, buy yourself a coffee, find a quite corner and enjoy the glorious luxury of not making best use of your time.

"The sheer lack of thinking time - time to smell the roses, to strategise, to let our visions and dreams crystallize, to consider our real priorities - is one of the reasons may (of us) get stuck in a rut.

Real Life Goals
The last story and perhaps the one with the greatest impact in being successful and still have a life is this.  One of Parsons friend, Matthew, was travelling in a chartered plane.  While on air, Matthew jot done some of his life goals.  They concerned the kind of money he would hope to earn in then years' time, the position he would have in the list of partners on the firm's notepaper and the value of the house he would live in.  But something terrible happened.  They had trouble with one of their engines and so they have to land in just a single engine.  Parsons shared what Matthew told him after that incident.  Matthew, during that millisecond of trouble in the air, he looked down at the goals resting on his lap and then looked out of the left window, saw the propeller stop and turned back to his list.  He whispered, "This are not my goals.  I've got bigger ambitions than these. I want to be a better father, a better husband, I want to leave this world a little better than how I found it."

***

I hope that with these short series where we studied Rob Parsons' Heart of Success, you've learned as much as I do that for us in PMC "it is not the destination that matters but the journey and of what we become along  the way."

As we conclude this series, let me ask the same questions Rob Parsons asked:

1. What is it for?
2. For whom am I doing it?
3. Why am I doing it?

Perhaps these questions really are at the heart of success.

***

Thank you for staying with us in this series.  The next series will be about a great book I've just re-discovered.  George S. Clason's the Richest Man in Babylon.  So stay tune... PMCers!

PMC Thought #8: A Gentle Reminder

I know this is way out the series, specially now that we are only one item to go to conclude our "Heart of Success" series.

I think that with the new year that just came in, we need to be reminded of our one true goal.  That is "Set a goal to become a millionaire not for the goal of being a millionaire but for what it requires of you to achieve it.”

Yes, I believe that we need to be constantly reminded of this goal.  It is not the material possessions that we will achieve that matters the most but the kind of person that we will become as we achieve our goals.

That's all for now and see you on the next PMC Though#9.


P.S.  Happy New Year Everyone!  May 2013 bring upon us the realization of all our dreams!