LOVE OF MONEY OR LOVE OF MY FAMILY

(jojo III)

I've never been so emotionally attached in everything in life except when it comes to my family. This is simply because it's probably human nature to find peace of mind and a deep seated happiness in your heart when you are doing a great favor to your love ones. It is not the gift that counts. It is the joy of giving them the gift that gives me inner abundance of happiness. I strongly believe that serving and loving them wholeheartedly is one way of pleasing my self more than them. Having them beside me help me accumulate greater courage to paddle the tide of life's trials and challenges. For me, no ordinary words can describe what they mean to me. They are the true meaning of GOLDS and DIAMONDS. That's why when people ask me why I am so busy spending my time learning the formula of success, I always reply in a humble way...FOR THE LOVE OF MY FAMILY!

I strongly believe that it is my obligation to my self and my family to provide a better future and lift ourselves up to the higher standard of living. To keep on keeping the options open in every aspect of life that will help me find the right path to my designed destiny. It is only logical for us to do everything we can and if it's not enough - to learn more so that we can do more, until we achieve our dreams and not be content in what is life has been giving us...but of what it is that we can give more to life.

I will never allow my logic to be infiltrated by weak and unproductive thoughts. It is my passion to share with my wife and kids every single happiness of living the benefits of working hard and doing the best I can to live our life in abundance. Some of the people thought that the reason that they are not wealthy is because of their family..."so many expenses, so many kids, so many things to buy, salary is not enough and income is too small." Such statements keep them away from thinking and finding ways and means to overcome the obstacles. For me, my family is the driving force to aim high and move from one stage to the next level. Their needs drive me to always find ways on how to afford it.

What others thought are their weakness, are the very same reason I have of what I thought is my strength. Everyday, I'm converting this strength into my horse power engine and that gives me the feeling of becoming more powerful inside, and as a result, the stages of my life changes everyday... thus the life of my family.

For people who are observing outside always thought I'm greedy to change my life's path from serving the people to go for financial wealth. Well, everybody's entitled to their own opinion. For me, it's always for the love of my family that pushes me through. To work so hard to achieve my dream of finding myself someday, preaching the possibility of success among OFWs and living beside my family everyday especially when they needed me most. We all knew from the very start that we can't work all our lives to earn for a living, or be separated to our families, and missed the life of our children while they are growing. In the end, it is what we do to that theory that matters most...are we doing something about it, or are we just going with the flow just like everybody else - work abroad, earn money, spend, work abroad, earn money, spend and the cycle goes on and on.

For the love of our family, let's stop the cycle. Plan our life and learn from our and other OFWs experiences. It's time to live our life with passion. No matter where we are or whatever situation we are in. We can always find a way to change it - NOW!...And live our life the way we want it to, not the way life dictates us. For the love our family, think and find a way to grow rich!

JOJO GERONIMO
Life Strategist

How to deal with your problem and emotion?

A short self reflection of life.

Is emotion one of the most powerful influences in a man's behavior? Indeed. This could be positive or negative to every individual, it all depend on the person. It's either we control our emotion or our emotion will control us. It's our choice.

People felt bad when things don't happen the way they want it to happen. Our anger slowly accumulates inside when things become out of hand, most especially in times where we could no longer handle the situation according to our plan. Fear begins to spread inside us, and that cause us to get angry with subjects/things that don't concerned our focus. The more our fear increase, the more we can't think objectively. Our emotion begins to overtake our logic. We are trapped in the box - being trapped is the main reason why people can't think creatively, and this is the time where our emotion slowly finds its way inside us. Our emotion is now controlling us, instead of us controlling our emotion. "I can't do that, I'm just not intelligent, I'm too weak for that, you don't understand and you'll never will, nobody cares about me"...statements like these stop the people from thinking, it stop us from accumulating courage or even find ways to go on to achieve our goal despite the obstacles. Statements like these or self pity help our emotion to turn our strength into weakness.

The more we focus on the problem, the heavier it will become. The heavier it become, the more we focus on the problem. It will not only affect our judgment but would also increase the probability of getting out of hand. It is because our behavior is affected, and when our behavior is affected, there's a strong tendency that other people around us will also become affected…and that produce another form of problem.

It is the reason why we easily become angry to other people who are not helpful to us even though we knew all along that they've got nothing to do with our problem. If we focus on the problem we become self centered, we expect people to understand our behavior even if they don't know what's happening within us. And when things become worst that it's so heavy to carry, we create this feeling inside us that we have all the reason to get angry with people around us...and sometimes with the very people we loved most. This is simply because we focus on the problem instead of solution. It's a question of our attitude towards a problem. It is a question of how we handle things in the worst and complicated situation.

Everything is a question of what you focus on in life. The more you focus on solution, the lighter the problem will become. The lighter it become, the easier for us to solve it. We become what we focus on as they said. Though it maybe easier said than done, however, if we will only practice and condition ourselves in a truly positive aspect of life, you will find out that everything in life were made not to add burden to your emotion, but to help you find the gift of overcoming the impossible situation and turn this experienced into skill of how to handle life easily. This is the way to live our life smart, to live our life like everything is easy. Start by controlling your emotion, instead of your emotion controlling you. Do this and I promise you, your life will never be the same again.

Stop complaining. Find a way to solve your problem. If we can't find a solution to a certain problem, maybe accepting it as it is - is the only solution. Accept the things as it is and move on. Stop becoming so hard on your self. You will only live once in this world - living your life to the fullest instead of living in the box is one of the smartest thing to do.

JOJO GERONIMO
Life Strategist

FOCUS ON SOLUTION INSTEAD OF PROBLEM

by: jojogeronimo@gmail.com

Sometimes the hardest moment in our life is the easiest obstacle to handle if we will only combine our mind with self confident and strong belief. Giving labor advice is a part of my work here in Korea. Many times, people come to me not because they want to find solution to their problem, but because they want to know what will happen if they don't face or deal with the problem.

It is one of the most noticeable attitude of people in all walk of life. We find it more easier to run away and hide our whole life in fear of facing the same problem than deal with it and face the consequences of our decision. Now, try to reverse the situation. Face the problem instead of running away from it. Right now, right there where you are, face your fear and start dealing with the problem. Though there is fear inside, find out what causes this fear. Where it came from? Why are you so afraid of dealing with the problem? By doing these, you will slowly find yourself gaining more interest on finding solution until you overcome the fear. In effect, you will look at all the possibilities, focus on the way to overcome the problem. If you failed on your first try, keep looking for other options instead of wasting your time convincing yourself on the consequences of the problem. We focus on solution instead of problem.

In doing these, you will find strength in your inner self and amazingly find that other people's life are designed to help you overcome the hardship of life. If we consistently focus ourselves on finding solution instead of problem, we will gain a lot of self confidence in the future. The difference between ordinary people and heroes are - ordinary people runaway with problems because they are afraid of facing their fear. Heroes do what is needed to be done even though there is fear inside.

It is not the consequences and the actual failure that creates fear inside us. It is the way we think that create fear inside, it stop us from doing better things and from accomplishing our task. Changing our way of thinking will help us overcome the fear. Fear produce inaction. The fact that your brain is inside your head makes you its master. Control your fear by controlling your brain instead of you getting controlled by your fear and your brain. Choose the right command for your brain and it will follow the way you want it to.

Sometimes we avoid the trouble of doing things because of the pain it may create. We see the small amount of pain in facing it, but we missed the huge amount of benefits it may create if we will only face the situation no matter how hard it is…remember the saying, there's always a rainbow at the end of the rain.
Cory Aquino once told, don't be afraid of suffering. Our life were made depending on the trials and suffering we've faced in life. The more trials and failures you've been through, the more stronger and better person you become. As long as we learn from our mistake, we will always find a way to become better and gain more strength to battle and sway the tide. Bravery may not be everything, but having this would help us deal with every obstacles that may come our way.

Focus your mind and be positive in everything you do. Believe in yourself that no matter how hard the kind of problem is, there is always someone, something to be there to help you overcome the pain and hardship and go on with life. God created us to row the sea instead of being carried out by the roaring wave - He also created the wind to help us reached our destination in case our body becomes too tired of counter-flowing the tide.

JOJO GERONIMO: Life Strategist! Making life easier through the power of decision.

THE MR. BEAN MENTALITY

by: jojogeronimo@gmail.com

Try to imagine yourself in the shoes of Mr. Bean and you are trapped inside the big running washing machine. No matter how hard you move, the situation will keep you rolling inside the roaring laundry of washing machine. Full of bubbles, all wet in the water of dirt and germs of your clothes. Now, say thank you to yourself that luckily you're not Mr. Bean or else, you will keep wandering to yourself how dumb you are to get inside the roaring washing machine.

The same is true with our situation in life, your financial situation in particular. If you keep finding yourself in the same situation over and over again, making the same mistake and experiencing the same problem from time to time, then there's a need for you to stop and think. There's a strong possibility that your life is controlling you, instead of you controlling your life. Before this will happen, stop and figure it out. Trust me on this - never follow the advice of people like Mr. Bean especially in your financial future.

Start by figuring out where you are right now. If you keep on finding yourself in the rat race no matter what you do, how much money you make or how hard you work, there is a big probability that you entrapped yourself in a no way out situation. Money has a mind of its own. It stays with people who knows how to handle them properly and to those who knows how to make them multiply from time to time. It runs away with those who don't have the knowledge of saving money and more concern on spending instead of keeping them.

Our Mr. Bean mentality to money will diminish the moment we start to accept the fact that money may not be everything in life but it affects everything in life. As long as you keep denying the importance of money into your life, it will never flow to your bank account. People are notorious in denying the importance of money, here are some of the examples of what people say about money…"money is not important, I could still live without money". "Money is the root of all evil, that's why I hate the idea of my name associating with money". You cant bring your money with you when you die". "I don't want to become greedy and liar, that's why I hate to become money conscious." "Businessman are evil, they only think about money."…looking at these very same people saying those comments, they are the same people who are swimming in debt and working their body to death just to earn money. They are the very same people who are getting angry to someone because of not lending them money they needed most for their child's education. They are the very same people who are spending most of their life working hard and leaving no time for their family. They are the very same people who are secretly dreaming of having a better and richer life despite of their denial on the importance of money.

Folks, the problem is not the money itself, but the way we think about money. We can be rich and have a very good, kind heart. Of course, we can always be poor and have a good and kind heart also. But which one do you like most? Worrying on your everyday life where to find money for your children's future while having a kind heart. Or worrying that your day is not enough to extend your financial wealth to those in need while having the same kind heart. Have you ever heard of the Bill Gates foundation, it is helping millions of million of people around the world to uplift their lives in poverty and savings thousands of AIDS victims through their wealth. How about the SM foundation? Henry Sy is spending millions of pesos every year to send unfortunate but deserving students in school, from High School to Colleges. Have you ever heard of rich and kind hearted Koreans who are helping our kababayans for their hospitalization here in Korea. Even repatriation of the remains to the Philippines, there were so many Koreans who are giving small part of their wealth to help us overcome the problem of the community. Money is not evil, it is the way we think that makes money evil. If money is evil then all of us would probably have evil in our pocket right now. All of us would probably working for 8-12 hours a day to wait for the day to receive our evil (salary). It is the way we think that makes our life bad, not the money itself.

Our fear of money is nothing but a by-product of ignorance, and as long as we keep denying into ourselves our need to learn, the ignorance will continue and even in danger of passing it to our children. The more we deny, the more we lose our chances of learning.

People experienced a lot of hardship simply because they are denying themselves to learn the value of money and the advantage of learning how to save and invest their money for their future. Money is a slave, they follow their own master, they bow to his/her command. And we are the master of our own money, if you command them to go, they will easily get vanished. But if you asked them to go and multiply, then they will comeback to you like a well of endless oil. Work hard and learn how to handle your finances wisely. We need to break loose of our Mr.Bean mentality about money. Be smart and set your own goal. How good it is to lived your life in your own country laughing beside your loved ones. We can't work all our life separated to our family. Learning the value of money is a good start to achieve our goal. Laugh with Mr. Bean, but don't copy his style when it comes to making decision about money. Trust me on this, Mr. Bean mentality wont make rich, it will make you funny instead.

Designing your life in Suit instead of Kuldoroy Jeans

By: jojogeronimo@gmail.com

With respect to people who love to wear Kuldoroy jeans, this article is not about to degrade the Kulduroy pants. I simply used the term to emphasized the importance of living a life of abundance by taking action one step at a time no matter where you are or who you are.

Looking at people in expensive suit always fascinate my imagination. Walking so proudly and confident with what they do, you could easily determine the level of success they've achieved especially those who rose from poverty to complete abundance of assets. They say dreaming is one of the greatest gift God has ever given to mankind. Each individual have it, each one of us held this to our mind, a dream that if left undone will sleep and remained unconscious.

Try to ask yourself, what are you doing at this point of time in your life? Does life nailed you in a situation where you are doing the same work over and over again, not because you like what you are doing but because your salary at work dictates the kind of life you need to do weather you like it or not? Are you an Engineer working in the food factory, whose line of work is totally different from your vocation? Are you a migrant worker who came here not because of your will but because of your family's needs? Are you a single parent whose heart and mind always stay in the Philippines but the body and soul deeply feel the pain of working far away from your love ones? For those who do, you are not alone. There are thousands of OFWs working far away from home because of the same sad story. Each one of us has our own desire to uplift the lives of our family. We are willing to sacrifice everything including our dreams just to provide them of their needs. Seeing our children realized their dream becomes our dream. Filipinos are known for these reasons, we are known for these kinds of belief and practices.

But does it really have to be this way? God is so good that He gave us the power to decide what is good for us. He loved us so much that he gave the world all the things that we need for us to utilize and use it for our own good. No matter where you are and whatever you do, there is always hope, a kind of hope that will awaken every sleeping dreams in our mind and live with it. Continue doing what you are doing but this time, do it wisely. Continue your job and earn a lot of money but this time do it wisely. We can still achieve our dreams if we will only make a plan and create a bold decision in our life. No matter where you are and wherever you are, your life changes the moment you make a decision to change your life. We all have the power to transform our life the way we want to live and the way we want it to be.

Wearing the same old Kulduroy jeans over and over again while dreaming of walking in Suit won't help you realized your dream. Making a bold decision in our life is not always easy, it is probably the hardest, it requires courage and discipline to maintain. Because change is always uncertain, people become afraid of changes. Not because it is uncertain, but because doing the same old thing is a lot easy for them than finding out what's behind those changes. To awaken our dreams we need to change! Because being in the same state and situation is a reminder for us that we are not living our dreams. Changing starts from our mind, we need to believe that we are capable of doing changes in our life. We need to awaken our dreams from the bottom of their sleep in order for us to move forward one step at a time while attending to the needs of our loved ones.

HANGGANG KAILAN TAYO NASA LABAS NG ATING BANSA?

by:jojogeronimo@gmail.com

Sa taon lamang ng 2006, nagtala ang POEA ng mahigit isang milyong katao na lumabas ng Pilipinas. Pinakamalaking record sa bilang ng mga kababayan nating ipinadala sa iba't-ibang destinasyon, 197 bansa sa kabuuan sa loob lamang ng isang taon. Sa Pilipinas, ang pangingibang bansa ay isang uri ng kaganapan na hinahangad ng halos lahat ng karaniwang mamamayan lalo na sa bahagi ng mga kababayan natin na walang makuhang trabaho sa ating bansa. Sa bawat lugar na iyong mapuntahan sa Pilipinas, asahan mong may mga miyembro ng pamilya na OFW. Ang Pilipino ang isa sa may pinakamalaking bilang ng mga mamamayan na nagtatrabaho sa ibang bansa, pangalawa sa bilang - kasunod sa bansang Mexico. Sa taon ding ito umabot sa US$12.76B ang remittances na natanggap ng mga pamilya ng OFW.

Walang masama sa migrasyon, ito ay isang karapatan ng bawat nilalang na mamuhay ng maayos at tama sa bansang ninanais nating puntahan. Bagamat nakabatay sa tamang proseso at nakaayon sa batas ng bansang tutuluyan at aalisan ang pamamaraan, ang migrasyon ay isang ekspresyon ng kalayaan sa pagpili. Subalit, kung ang migrasyon ay sapilitan, ibig sabihin, labag sa ating kalooban at kagustuhan ang umalis subalit wala tayong magawa - ito ay nagiging mali. Tinatawag itong—tulak ng kalagayan ayon sa iba't-ibang uri ng kadahilanan o Forced Migration. Maaring kahirapan, pagkabagot sa sistema ng bansa, pagkainip sa buhay, kawalan ng nakikitang pag-asa at marami pang iba. Mga kadahilanang bitbit ng bawat isa sa atin kung bakit tayo lumayo at nangibang bayan ganu'ng nasa Pilipinas ang ating mga mahal sa buhay. Ang bawat isa ay may kanya-kanyang dahilan sa paglisan, at ayon sa istatiska, kalakhang bilang ng mga Pilipinong lumikas ng bansa ay dahil sa kagustuhang maghanap ng trabaho at makakita ng oportunidad sa mga bansang mas abante ang kalagayan kaysa sa Pilipinas.

Sa ating pag-alis, may pangakong isa, dalawa o tatlong taon ng pag-iipon -- pampatayo ng bahay o kaya'y pambayad sa utang o di kaya'y pag-iipon ng kapital pang-kabuhayan at marami pang ibang kadahilanan. Subalit sa pagtakbo ng panahon, ang isang taon ay nagiging dalawa, ang dalawa ay nagiging tatlo at ang tatlo ay nagiging apat hanggang sa humaba ng humaba ang bilang ng mga panahon ng pagkakawalay natin sa ating mga mahal sa buhay.

Marahil ay hindi na lingid sa atin ang mga karanasan ng mga ama o ina na umalis sa kanilang bayan habang maliit pa ang anak, subalit sa paglakad ng araw, nakatapos na ng kolehiyo ang anak ay hindi pa din bumabalik ang magulang sa Pilipinas.

Malaking BAKIT? Ito ang madalas nating itanong sa ating sarili. Sa kabila ng mga ipinapadala nating pera bawat buwan, hindi pa din nababago ang ating mga pangekonomiyang kalagayan, ang ating buhay, ang ating sitwasyon. Bagamat sumasagi sa isip natin madalas ang pag-uwi upang makasama ang ating mga mahal sa buhay, nangingibabaw pa din ang pananatili at kumita ng pera sa ibang bansa.

Sa puntong ito, susubukan nating sagutin ang malaking katanungang ito sa ating mga sarili...BAKIT NGA BA?

ANG PERA AY NASA ISIP LAMANG
Una, saan napupunta ang US$12.76B na remittances natin sa ating mga pamilya? Ayon sa survey na isinagawa ng isang financial group, halos kabuuang porsiyento ng pamilya ng mga OFW sa pilipinas ay mababa ang kamalayan at kaisipan sa pag-iipon ng pera. Kalakhang bahagi ng mga perang pumapasok sa kanilang mga bank account ay napupunta sa mga gastusin sa pang araw-araw, pagbili ng mga labis na kagamitang hindi talaga kailangan, pagpapatayo ng malalaking bahay at kasangkapan, shopping malls, pagkain at luho sa materyal na pangangailangan – malaking bahagi ng mga bumubuhay sa mga SM, Robinson, Jollibee, Bench atbp. ay pamilya ng mga OFW. Samantalang sa isinagawang survey naman ng Citibank sa Pilipinas, isa lamang sa bawat sampung katao ang gumagawa ng pag-iipon para sa kanyang kinabukasan. Kalakhang bilang ng mga Pilipino ay nauubos ang perang pinaghirapan sa kasalukuyan. Bagamat marami ang nag-iisip na makaipon, iilan lamang ang may sapat na disiplina upang maisakatuparan ito.

Kung pag—iisipang mabuti, nakakaalarma ang ganitong pagsusuri sa kamalayan ng mga Pilipino. Malaking bagay ang pagkakaroon ng tamang disiplina upang makaipon. Kung nais nating mabago ang ating buhay, hindi lamang ang pagkakaroon ng maraming pera ang solusyon. Pansinin mo kung isa ka sa mga taong kahit gaano pa kalaki ang mahawakang pera, asahan mong kulang at kulang pa din. Ito ay dahil hindi pera ang problema, kung hindi ang paraan ng paghawak ng pera. Kung nais nating mabago ang ating kalagayan, unahin nating baguhin ang ating gawi at kaisipan. Ang pera ay nasa isip lamang, ganun din ang pag-aalaga dito. Hindi siya ginagastos ng tukso o pagnanasang bumili, hindi din ito nauubos ng kusa, ang paggastos ay dumadaan muna sa proseso ng ating isipan bago ito isagawa. Kung paanong ganun din ang proseso bago ka makagawa ng pera, kailangan mo munang padaanin sa iyong isip ang proseso upang makalikha ng pera – maging trabaho man o ibang paraan ng paglikha nito. Ito ang dahilan kung bakit kadalasan, nami-misinterpret natin ang mga may kaya sa buhay o kaya'y may mga naipon - bilang mga taong kuripot. Sa totoo lang, hindi sila naging mayaman o kaya'y nagkaroon ng maraming savings dahil sa kuripot sila, kung hindi dahil nakalikha sila ng disiplina sa paggastos ng pera. Naniwala silang ang pagnanasang gastusin ang pera sa mga luho ay nasa kanilang isipan lamang, kung saan ang paglikha ng pera ay nasa isip din lamang. Dahil sa nasa isip lamang ang lahat ng ito, at ang isip ay nasa loob ng ating pagkatao, nangangahulugan lamang na tayo pa din ang Big Boss ng ating isip. At dahil ikaw ang Big Boss, ikaw ang magdedesisyon kung saan mo ito dadalhin, sa pag-iipon ba ng tama o sa pagsunod mo sa tawag ng hindi makatwirang paggastos?

JUAN: Gastos sa luhoàwalang naiiponàsource ng income: trabaho ulit para magkaperaàgastosàwalang iponàtrabaho hanggang tumanda sa ibang bansaàpag-uwi sa Pilipinas à gastos à kailangang umasa sa anak para sa gamot at kabuhayan kapag hindi na kayang magtrabaho.

PEDRO: Tipidàmay naiiponàpinagkakakitaan ulit ang naiiponàpampatayo ng kabuhayanàsource ng income: kita sa trabaho, kita sa naipon, kita sa negosyoàinvestmentàpag-uwi sa Pilipinas, retirement securityà Source ng income: negosyo, investmentà kasama ang pamilya sa Pilipinas at hindi na kailangan pang mangibang bansa para mabuhay.

ALAMIN ANG KAIBAHAN NG "GUSTO AT KAILANGAN"
Pangalawa, nakatuon ang ating kaisipan sa mga gastusing pampamilya. Maluwag tayo sa lahat ng uri ng mga gastusin pagdating sa ating mga mahal sa buhay. Nakahanda tayong pakawalan ang inipon natin ng maraming taon sa isang pagkakataon lamang ng pangangailangan ng ating mahal sa buhay. Nakafocus tayo sa paggastos ng ating naipon sa halip na gumawa ng ibang paraan upang solusyunan ang papasok na problema.

Mahalaga dito ang pag-aaral at kaalaman sa paghawak ng pera. Kung wala tayong pagsisikap na matuto sa paghawak ng perang pinagpapaguran natin, hinding-hindi tayo makakaipon o kaya'y aabante sa pinansiyal na bahagi ng ating buhay. Kailangan matutunan nating kilalanin ang ating mga gusto (wants) at kailangan (needs) kapag hindi natin kayang paghiwalayin ang dalawa, may problema tayo sa ating pananaw sa pera. Madalas tayong naghahangad ng magagarang kagamitan at luho sa buhay…sino nga ba ang hindi? Subalit dapat natin maunawaan na ang paggamit sa perang ating pinagpapaguran, pambili sa mga bagay na gusto lamang natin kahit hindi kailangan ay katumbas din ng araw na ipinagtrabaho natin at araw na nawawala sa ating buhay.

JUAN: kita sa trabahoàpambili ng MP3, PSP, Levi's etc. à ubos ang peraàtrabahoàgastosànaniniwalang dapat lang niyang ibigay ang luho sa sarili dahil nagpapagod siya sa trabahoàtumanda na walang iponàtrabaho pa din para buhayin ang pamilya

PEDRO: kita sa trabahoàipon at gastos sa mga bagay na kailangan lamangàpinapalaki ang perang naiponànagtayo ng kabuhayanàkita sa trabaho at kita sa kabuhayanàinvestmentàretirement, masayang kasama ang pamilya.

PAGKATAPOS MAKAIPON, ANO NA ANG KASUNOD?
Pangatlo, marami sa atin ang ipon ng ipon ng pera mula sa ating pagtatrabaho subalit hindi natin alam kung saan ito dadalhin pagkatapos nating ipunin. Bagamat marami tayong iniisip sa ating kinabukasan, subalit dahil sa kawalan ng konkretong plano na nakasulat sa ating isip at sa papel...ang matagal nating pinag-ipunan ay dahan-dahan ding mauubos dahil sa kawalan ng direksyon sa pupuntahan ng ating pera.

JUAN: Trabahoàiponàtrabahoàiponàtrabahoàiponànangailangan ang pamilya ng dagliang panggastosàubos ang naipon ng matagal à trabaho àiponàtrabaho

PEDRO: Trabahoàiponàplano (mahalaga ito upang malaman kung magkano ang dapat lamang gastusin at magkano ang dapat itabi, sa kahit anu pa mang kadahilanan ang dumating)àkabuhayanàpamumuhay na kasama ang pamilya sa Pilipinas

HINDI PA KAYAMANAN ANG ISANG BAGAY NA NASA ISIP LAMANG
Pang-apat, mayaman tayo sa materyal na kayamanan..appliances, bahay, sasakyan, lupa, alahas at iba pang mga luho dahil sa paniniwala nating ang mga ito ay maaaring maging pera kapag kailangan natin sa panahon ng kagipitan. Ginto man ang hawak natin, asahan mong sa panahon na kapag ikaw ang nangangailangan ng pera - kahit ginto ay hindi mo maibebenta sa halaga noong una mo itong binili. Ang tawag dito ay asset rich but cash poor. Halimbawa dito ay ang mga lupaing binili ng CAP (educational plan company), sa panahong nag-matured na ang mga insurance ng kanilang mga kleyente, wala itong makuhang benepisyo mula sa CAP dahil ang pera nito ay nakapasok lahat sa mga lupain. Mga lupa na hindi mai-convert sa pera dahil sa kawalan ng mga investors na nangangailangan ng lupa. Subukan nating magbenta ng ating lupa o di kaya'y bahay at madaling malaman ang ibig sabihin ng bahaging ito, ang lupa ay mayaman sa pangako, subalit mahirap ibenta. Asset Rich but Cash Poor. Nagiging kayamanan lamang ang kotse, kasangkapan, bahay o lupain kung ito ay nagpapasok ng pera sa ating bulsa. Subalit hanggat ang kikitain nito ay nasa isip lamang natin o di kaya'y nasa pangako pa lamang o di kaya'y binabayaran mo ang pagme-maintain dito tulad ng taxes, pagpapagawa at ibapa, hindi ito pwedeng maging kayamanan o panghawakan para sa ating kinabukasan. Ang pag-iinvest sa mga materyal na bagay ay naaayon lamang kung may mga labis ka ng pera o kabuhayan na magbibigay ng iyong mga pangangailangan kahit hindi mo asahan ang iyong mga materyal na investments.

JUAN: trabahoàiponàbumili ng alahas (investment)àbumili ng mga lupain (tataas ang value)àtulog ang pera sa mga pangakong kita sa lupa at alahasà nangailangan ng malaking halaga, emergencyàbinenta sa murang halaga ang alahasà walang bumili ng lupa, ibenenta sa mababang halaga-->trabaho ulitàpagkakalayo sa pamilya hanggang tumanda
Note: Asset Rich but Cash Poor

PEDRO: trabahoàiponàinvestment (nagtatrabaho din ang pera para kumita)àdalawang source ng income: kita sa trabaho at kita ng perang nasa investmentà kabuhayanàinvestment (money work for him)àretirement, kasama ng pamilya.
Note: Nagiging pinansiyal na kayamanan lamang ang isang bagay kung ito ay nagpapasok sa ating bulsa ng kita o pera. Hanggat ang kikitain nito ay nasa isip lamang natin o di kaya'y nasa pangako pa lamang, hindi ito pwedeng tawaging kayamanan o di kaya'y panghawakan man lamang para sa ating kinabukasan.

MAS MARAMING MAGAGAWA KUNG LALABANAN ANG TAKOT
Panglima, labanan ang takot. Walang tao ang hindi nakakaramdam ng takot. Bawat isa ay may kanya-kanyang takot sa anumang aspeto ng buhay. Ang tao ay nagkakaiba hindi sa laki o liit ng takot na dala natin sa ating sarili, kung hindi sa paraan kung paano natin ginagamit ito. Maging ang mga bayani ay may takot na dala sa kanilang mga sarili, subalit sa kabila nito, ginawa pa din nila ang kanilang naisin, ito ang dahilan kung bakit sila kinilala at hinangaan.

Minsan subukan nating gawin ang mga bagay na sa tingin natin ay makakatulong sa atin sa hinaharap kahit na may takot tayong gawin ito. Madalas ay mas natatakot tayo sa maliit na kahihiyang idudulot sa atin ng isang bagay kapag ginawa natin ito at hindi tayo magtagumpay, sa halip na manghinayang tayo sa mas malaking biyaya na nag-aabang sa atin kung sakaling gawin natin ito at magtagumpay tayo. Labanan ang takot at asahan nating mas marami tayong magagawa sa ating buhay.

JUAN: Takot à Kawalan Ng GawaàHindi kumikilos dahil sa takot à Walang Nararating.
PEDRO: Paglaban sa takotàGawaàPagkakaroon ng resulta àMay Nararating

IBUHOS ANG GALING AT ORAS SA NAIS MARATING
Panghuli, mahalaga ang direksyon at plano sa buhay. Kung wala tayo nito, para tayong naglalakad sa disyerto na nakapiring ang mata. Mas madali nating maaabot ang ating mga pangarap kung isasalin natin ito sa plano, nakasulat at detalyado...sa ganitong paraan, mas madali nating mararating ang ating mga pangarap sa buhay dahil nakikita natin ang mga mahahalagang bagay na dapat nating gawin. Magkakaroon tayo ng focus at direksyon, mabibigyan natin ng kahalagahan ang mga bagay na importante at hindi importante sa buhay natin. Sa ganitong paraan, mababawasan ang mga ginagawa nating hindi tumutugma sa nais nating marating. Lahat ng gagawin mo sa buhay ay naka-focus sa mga bagay na makakatulong sa iyong mga plano at mabubuting pangarap sa buhay. Ang oras ang pinakamahalagang kakampi ng tao upang magtagumpay, kung mababawasan natin ang mga gawaing hindi importante sa ating mga pangarap, mas madali tayong makakarating sa ating nais puntahan.

JUAN: trabahoàiponàbarkadaàinom, tambayàtrabahoàiponàuwi sa pinas, walang planoàgastosàwalang direksyonàgastosàubos ang naiponàhanap ulit ng ibang bansang pupuntahan

PEDRO: trabahoàiponàplano na magkaroon ng kabuhayan sa pinas na kasama ang pamilyaàiponàtrabahoàiponàuwi sa pinasàdetalyado ang plano sa kabuhayang itatayo (malinaw ang plano kung sakaling lumakas man o humina ang kabuhayan, alam ang gagawin)àmay direksyon, determinado na magtagumpayàinvestmentàretirement kasama ang pamilya na nabubuhay ng maayos sa Pilipinas.

Ang ilan sa mga nabasa natin ay isa lamang pagpapasimple sa isang sitwasyon upang madali natin itong maintindihan. Marahil ay masasabi nating madaling sabihin ang mga nabanggit, subalit mahirap gawin. Mahalagang maunawaan sana natin na kung nasaan at anuman ang sitwasyon natin sa buhay ngayon, ito ay dahil pinili nating maging ganito. Walang nagtulak sa atin upang gawin kung anuman ang kinahinatnan ng ating buhay. Ang lahat ng nangyayari sa atin ay desisyong nagmula sa ating pagpili..hindi ibig sabihin nito na nasa atin ang lahat ng sisi kung may mga mali man tayong nagagawa, ang ibig lamang sabihin ay dapat alam natin na tayo, ang sarili natin ang responsable sa mga bagay na nangyayari sa atin. Hanggat hindi tayo nagiging responsable sa sarili nating mga desisyon, hindi natin makikita na kaya nating baguhin ang ating sitwasyon at kinalalagyan sa kasalukuyan kung hindi ka man kuntento dito.

Madaming panahon na ang nawala, maraming pagkakataon na ang nasayang, bawat araw na nasa iba tayong bansa ay isang araw na wala din tayo sa tabi ng ating mga mahal sa buhay. At kadalasan ay nangyayari ito dahil lamang sa maling paniniwala....kasi bulok ang gobyerno, kasi ipinanganak kaming mahirap, kasi magastos ang mga anak ko, kasi yung kapitbahay namin, kasi ang abu sayyaf, kasi..kasi...ang daming kasi. Nakakita na ba kayo ng taong umasenso dahil marami siyang KASI sa buhay?

Ang pagbabago ay nagmumula sa atin, tayo lamang ang makakapagpabago sa ating buhay. Hanggat hindi natin pinanghahawakan ang responsibilidad sa ating sarili, hinding-hindi ito mababago. Kadalasan ang pinansiyal na pag-unlad ang hinihintay natin upang bumalik ng Pilipinas, upang makapagtayo ng kabuhayan at mabuhay na kasama ang ating pamilya. Bagamat ito ang ating hinihintay, wala din tayong ginagawa upang matuto sa pinansiyal na aspeto ng ating buhay. Ang resulta, dahil sa kawalan ng plano at pagsisikap na matuto sa pinansiyal na aspeto, nauubos at nauubos din agad ang pinag-ipunan ng matagal. Ito ang dahilan kung bakit kinakailangan muling bumalik ng ibang bansa sa oras na ubos na ang naipon. Kung nanaisin talaga natin, kaya natin itong mangyari, simulan natin sa ating mga kaisipan ang pagbabago, mula dito, mababago din ang iyong attitude sa buhay at pananaw kung paano natin haharapin ang ating mga mithiin. Kung nakaya ng iba na umangat mula sa paghihirap patungo sa pag-asenso, walang dahilan para hindi din natin makaya. Ayon nga sa kasabihan, ang tao kapag determinado, walang dahilan sa sarili, palagi itong gumagawa ng paraan.

The Movie That Changed My Life

By: jojogeronimo@gmail.com

I happened to chat with a friend of mine lat week in Hyehwadong. We've been friends for six years now. We've shared a lot of good times and troubles when we were still both working as workers in a computer embroidery factory. He's still the same as ever, funny and a true friend, ready to be there by your side in times of needs and hardships. He's still working at the same company and earning more money than when we were together. He promised not to change workplace for the rest of his stay in Korea. He also told me that it helped him a lot, in terms of financial needs, if he would stay in one workplace instead of changing place from one to another. The last time that we've met was when I decided to go back home in the Philippines to live with my loving wife and two (2) trouble-making kids (hehehe..joke lang, my kids are the best and we are so proud of them). Our friendship goes back when both of us were politically active. Every Sunday, we see each other with some of our close friends. We see to it that we expressed our opinions and frustrations, including hatreds on the present political situation of our country. I, myself, would be in rage every time the President Estrada speaks in front of the camera and presents his program of governance and vision of uplifting the life of every Filipino. The more he boasts of his performance and economic programs, the more I got furious. It was a kind of anger that is boiling inside, ready to stand on stage and roar out the lies and deceits of the speech. Deep inside I'm boiling like a pot of Kalbitang soup in anger. Woow, that was really exhausting! It is like getting out of my inner self for a moment and shouting out the anger in an open sea, then going back to myself finding my body and mind in total depression and frustration to the government. As a result – it's like a bull in the mind of a human being, or rather, a body of a human being in the mind of an angry bull.

We've lived our lives for quite sometime in such a situation getting angry to someone we don't know, fighting someone we don't see, shouting our anger to the air and declaring war to the invisible enemy. Until one day, a movie entitled, "Cinderella Man" starring Russel Crowe took my attention and sunk in my mind. It hit me like a solid punched from Manny Paquiao…BOOM. It changed my mind, my thought, my belief and my way of life. In the movie, Russel Crowe made a lot of sacrifices before he achieved success. He's fighting poverty by his hand. He was a professional boxer who achieved success, lost his belt and regained it during the time of depression. He was a family man, a dedicated father and a loving husband who is willing to swim against the tide in order to survive his family. He begged and worked like a horse in order to keep his promise to his son not to send them away whatever happens, despite of the worst depression and outright poverty, his determination helped him to overcome the challenges and hardships of life. He never complained in life, he never blamed anybody for his poverty, he never quitted in times of trials, he never gave up when he is beaten and never stopped loving his family in times of difficulty and hopelessness. He was so sure of his direction in life. He don't bend and hesitate in his decision and purpose in life.

There are more stories in the story of his life. There are more lessons and inspiration to learn especially for someone whose purpose in life is to serve and love his/her family. His story is the real meaning of definiteness of purpose. His character and attitude in life portrayed the true secret of achieving success and happiness. Watching his story would surely help you find the right road to trace in order to get where you want to go.

Going back to the story of our friendship…now that we are totally different in our beliefs and concerns, the friendship will remain but the belief and principle differs a lot. He still strongly believed that the government is the culprit for the hardship and poverty he's experiencing, and I respect his unwavering principle. But for me, I've chosen my own destiny. And by doing so, I also choose the kind of thinking that will support my chosen path. You can't win a battle if you don't know who and where is the enemy. We can't win a fight if the truth is - our self is the one we are fighting. We need to define our life and clearly define our direction. We need to write it down and act fast, as fast as we can. The real battle is within our inner self. That is the place where the war begins. We create our own hatred, we create poverty into our life, we create our own success and failures…we attract what we focus on in our life. What we are today is the result of our decision in the past, and what we are going to be would be the result of our action and decision today.

After watching the movie, I think I could easily describe what happened to my inner self. By quoting Anthony Robbins in his book, "It's in your moments of decision that your destiny is shaped." Yes, I've made a decision in life to change my destiny and design my own journey. A journey where I know the kind of road I'm traveling. Although the road is rough and far, being in control of the situation instead of the situation controlling me, I know the journey would reach its destination no matter how far it is. I respect the decision of my friend, and assured him that I will also be here by his side every time he needed my help. And again, although our roads in life are different from each other, I still learn a lot from him.

My friend, we may have different directions to travel, our journey will begin the moment we decide….. goodluck, wishing you the best!

STOP WISHING AND START LIVING

by jojogeronimo@gmail.com

We all have our dreams. Some are working hard to achieve it, while some are living their dream. Most of the people are just dreaming. They don’t take it seriously. Although it’s there in their minds and sometimes they mumble it to their friends or beloved half. At the end of the day, it fades along with the light of the sunset. Dream is a vision of hope. It provides us the necessary belief to go on in spite of hardships and obstacles in life.

Imagine yourself dreaming in a rocking chair – your feeling is so good that your face is smiling without you noticing it. It is because your dream is so big that you can embrace it right at that moment. After that, you go on with life doing the same thing and wondering why your life didn’t changed? It is because you’re probably living a life in the JUST A DREAM stage. Very few people are moving towards the stage of WORKING HARD TO ACHIEVE IT until they attained the LIVING YOUR DREAM stage. It’s because staying where you are is a lot easier than moving forward to a new direction. Even though the promise of moving forward is so huge and beneficial, we are still more afraid of traveling the journey than staying in a place of familiarity where fear and uncertainty exist.

We are satisfied on wishing our life to become better someday or hoping to hit the lotto jackpot even if the chance of winning is the same as being hit by Korean Airlines twice in the same spot. We resort to these kinds of wishes, simply because we don’t take our dream seriously. We find ways to escape the responsibility of pursuing it by finding lots of reasons…because I don’t have time, I don’t have money, I don’t have the skills, my friends don’t like it, they don’t support me, I’ not rich, I’m not good looking, etc ….People are notorious for reasoning, we always find faults to others. We blame everything under the sun except our selves. This should stop. We need to go and move on in life. We need to see ourselves as the navigators of our own lives. We need to stop finding faults to others and work hard, so hard that we could almost see ourselves living our own dreams. We need to live our lives with passion. Start looking ourselves like ultimate warriors, ready to conquer the earth and turn every rock of obstacles into liquid of hopes and achievements.

Just like every ordinary people on this earth, the Americans, Europeans and Koreans, we are Filipinos. We could do everything if we believe in ourselves, if we believe in each one of us, if we stop complaining in life and be open to the possibility of doing more than you can achieve. Have you ever asked your self, hanggang dito na lang ba ako? If not, THINK AGAIN! No matter where you are at this moment, no matter how disgusting you look, how poor you are, how broke you were, how fat you are…YOU CAN STILL LIVE YOUR LIFE WITH PASSION. This is how God created us, to make the most of ourselves and be a blessing to others. If you want your life to change, you need to change the way you think. As Hugh Prather said, ”Just when I think I have learned the way to live, life changes.”

Start now. Don’t procrastinate. We will only live once in this world, every hour and day that will past is a day and hour of lost in our life. You could never pull it back to use again. So if you are here in Korea at isa kang istambay na walang trabaho, happy go lucky or one day millionaire kind of guy - mag-isip ka kabayan. There must be something wrong with the way things are going in you. You are losing the golden moment of your life…the opportunity of every OFWs to work hard and wisely save for their future as fast as they can, to be with your love ones and live with them as fast as you can. Don’t let the experiences of other OFWs become your sad story too. Our lives change the moment we decided to. We all have the power to attract to ourselves what ever we focus on in life - focus on important and on the things that matter most. If you think being with your friends won’t help you achieve the kind of life you envisioned, find additional friends who have the same vision and dreams like you. People of the same personality and prospective attract each other. Being with them will help you steadfastly move to the same direction.

Be responsible to yourself. Stop blaming other people. I’ve seen a lot of OFWs in this situation where people blame others for their failures. They blame everybody except themselves for not having enough savings….Kasi malakas ang gastos nila sa bahay, kasi mahal ang bilihin sa Pilipinas, kasi yung mga kapatid ko pinag-aaral ko pa, kasi hindi sila nagababayad, kasi nagamit ng mga magulang ko, kasi kailangan bumili ng ganito at ng ganun, kasi ang abu sayyaf, kasi si Gloria, kasi magnanakaw ang mga politiko, etc,. Unless we find ourselves responsible to every things we do and to every decisions we make, our lives will never change. “If you are not ready to alter your way of life, you cannot begin to heal.” Hippocrates (460-377 B.C).

Life is so good for us to waste and just let it past. Start pushing yourself towards a higher quality of life. Wipe away the dust in the box of your dreams. Create a system in life that will help push you past your obstacles, achieve your goals, take consistent action on your ideas, and ultimately help you redefine and improve the quality of your entire life. So get started now and learn how to start living your life with more passion, more happiness, and more fulfillment than ever before.
Ask yourself, does your dream will bring you happiness and satisfaction in life? If so, what’s stopping you? Make a commitment today to hold yourself accountable for your personal growth. Create a plan of your dream - write every detail and the things to do in order to accomplish it. Focus your time and energy in achieving it. No matter how afraid you are, do it anyway…along the way, you will find help and things you needed most from the people whose lives were designed to help you accomplish your dream. Stop wishing and start living. Move your feet and make things possible. Remember, there is no such thing as impossible, only laziness made things impossible. – END

Never Give Up, Learn!

by Ace Fikingas

Coming back home has its ups and downs. It’s Ups because I was able to see my kids, family and friends. How can I describe the feeling? No words could ever justify it until this time. The DOWNs? So frustrating that sometimes I like to rush back to Korea or wherever else in this world to sustain my daily living! Nakakainis talaga. Mabuti sana kung marami akong ipon and have invested wisely but the fact is, kabaliktaran. There are lots of opportunists too, offering you this and that. Kung gullible ka, papasukin mo lahat. (I know you know what I mean sa daming networking dito sa Pinas) Adding to this dilemma is the political crises. Economy is going down. Paano ito? If I focus myself in thinking what’s going to happen without action, siguro nasa mental na ako. Grabe!

Since I did not go back to Korea December 2003, I somehow burn my brows to engineering studies while doing a lil’ business. The business was bankrupt as soon as I started it. Blame it to little knowledge and wrong investment. However, this did not stop me to venture to other businesses. Thanks God, after 11 networking companies I have found this latest discovery truly dynamic (to be discussed in later updates). This is the end of my gallivanting searches and the beginning of a new challenge to lead a better life! (source: Cordilove Networks, July 18, 2005)

MY KIND OF BUSINESS

I’ve previously mentioned about my membership in 11 multilevel marketing companies and it is my pleasure to share with you the experiences I’ve gone through. Let’s see if this will make or break you!

Palibhasa’y may pera akong konti, my new-found friends here convinced me to invest in this shoe company. Mas maganda daw kung mag-3 headers ako para mas malaki ang kita at maging exclusive service center pa ng Baguio City. And to become one, I have to invest additional money for the start-up products. They promised to help me all the way, do the sales and marketing and most importantly put downlines in my power leg. Kasi, this is a binary system. With this kind of strategy, who am I to reject it? Gusto ko yatang kumita agad dahil di na nga ako nakabalik ng Korea eh. Kaya I rented a stall in the midst of the city for easy access to prospect customers, one month advance and one month deposit pa! The first two months is understandably have no visible signs of profitability. Pero ok lang. I’ve learn the know-how of the business and done my best to recruit members of family, friends, acquaintances and relatives. However, I’m doing this part time because I was studying too. And true to their words, my uplines and downlines manned the stall. I was not there all the time.

The problem begun when I noticed that there’s no income at all and we’re paying the monthly rental! Moreover, the powerleg (right) is going strong but the left leg remains as is with only two members, my cousins who are not doing the network (they are gov’t. employees). So since this is a binary system, I AM NOT GAINING ANYTHING except of course the % discount if I buy products which I rarely do.

Another friend offered a seemingly more profitable multilevel marketing that of personal and home cares. Again, xxx money was invested to have exclusive contract within Baguio City with the full support of the company. This has aggravated the problem with the binary because of conflict of focus daw! With this development, the binary leaders were leaving one by one until no one was left to help me. I was scared dahil hindi biro ang pera na nawala sa akin. Na-close na ang aking bank account!

Maganda na sana itong mlm na ito if not of the sulutan blues of members and worst, the non-compliance of the verbal agreement of exclusivity. Also, the changes in the marketing plan sucks. Some of my partners got products and up to this time have not paid them!

I said I have to be open-minded. So I jumped from one networking to another aiming to get even with my losses. Pero anong nangyari? Lalo na akong nasadlak sa dusa. Sabi nila, ang utang daw ay katambal ng negosyo. Heto na naman ako, with some of my business partners despite the discouragements of my sister, nangutang kami with 10% monthly interests. Diyos ko po! The cycle kept on and on …

… until AMWAY with NETWORK 21 came along - that’s Helping People Live Better Lives!
Join kayo? Just contact me, sa totoo lang.

Note: some of the 11 companies were classified pyramiding scams! Kaya ingat po kayo sa inyong mga sinasalihang negosyo. Consult the experts! (source: Cordilove Networks, July 20, 2005)