RTB - First Investment Story

Friday, yes, finally, my last working night for this month. How time flies faster than I could keep up with. These couple of weeks has me spinning my butt for a heavy workload. But hey, I am not complaining at all. I appreciate that I am given challenges.At my current status, where I no longer grab overtimes since my hands are full at home and some other things, I still wanted to feel my relevance at work.

Most often than not, they say that married women tend to backslide at work because priorities has changed and all. Yes, I do. My priorities has changed. I wanted to be a full time mom. And because I dream of that, I wanted that my steps to that dream is worthwhile. That I can say that I did my best.

And with some to do list not currently updated due to this workloads, husband and I was able to squeeze a couple of hours the other day. The notice we received was a month old. A letter from the bank where we have gotten our very first investment. A Government Securities (GS) under the RTB (Retail Treasury Bonds).

We open a separate accounts for this on a government bank. I was scared at first to take this but they open at a very minimum investment amount a couple of years ago. 5000 pesos was the minimum amount for primary market during that time. I was super scared to lost a hundred before, but I thought, I am lending the government. I am sure, the government will be there in the next 25 years right?

You read it right. We park our little savings that time for a 25 years tenor. Hey, we are newbies with no knowledge at all to other forms of investments. And the yield, 6.125% only. Imagine, how much we are actually missing comparing to mutual funds. However, we were told that this of investments are risk free. The safest of its kind in the investment market since they are back by the full taxing power of the government.

The payout is every quarter. Not bad though, something's coming in every quarter.

Just sharing. :) God Bless.

My Method to Financial Freedom - Part 1

Morning walk. I get the chance to think of anything walking my way home to our little apartment from the 8-hour shift in the office. I got the chance to sort some things in my mind. Thought about the whole day, how it went, and how I can be better later tonight. I have this desire to be at least efficient and effective in my post. The company has now all these rules set up and implemented which can provide grounds for termination. And I do not want that to happen to me to soon. Now that we are preparing ourselves to be financially free.

We need these jobs to keep us going. When our family experience having debts and my parent's can't nearly send us to school, I told myself that I am going to work until my retirement. You see both my parents have been unemployed for a long time now. When our youngest was born, my mother gave up her office job and stayed at home to take care of us. My father went oversea for 2 years. After that, he became a driver. Until he got sick, when I was in college. Our lowest of lowest when it comes to our finances. All four of us were in college and in some point one of us has to give way for the others.

So there it was. Where I am coming from. From the moment I became an employee, I never had a chance to be in between jobs. I keep going as an employee. But these last 2 years, have been a wonderful years of learning with 2014 a real blast.

I understand that family should always comes first. Just like what my mother did for us when we are young. And now, I understand as well, that at this early, I should not give up my work yet. Because, I do not want to tell my child someday that we can no longer afford her tuition fee. Yes, I know, financial literacy is not yet being taught in school. But, to at least land to a decent job, she should have the credentials. I credit my current job status to the university I have attended to. It pave a way at some point to my very first supervisory job.

As I progress to learning more of this financial freedom, and the influence I gathered from the financial blogs I religiously read daily, now I am aiming forward to staying at home looking after my little girl and financially stable. So how can I do that?

I think I need another source of income where I can work at home with flexible time. Blogging may help if it is monetizing or other online jobs. Initially, I have this blog but not yet monetizing.

Traditional business such as a rice retail store. It is generating a small income at the moment. This is a passive income for us where someone takes care of the business.

Other investments such as mutual funds. Yes, these are earning but in paper gains in the meantime.

Husband and I are currently employed and had no plans yet of giving up being an employee. Fine, we are corporate slaves at the moment. And maybe, we can look for greener pasture in the future and eventually let this go when one of our dream of managing a business will come true.

And though we have added streams of income, still if we are not careful with our spending style, I think we are no nearer to our change of status.

Part 2 coming soon. Smile. And God Bless. :)

Alms Giving - My take

I believe in giving and helping as shown in my previous post. It is a superficial aid to a long time problem of poverty but at least we share something to someone who are in need. Many of us need someone who can help. And most of us can. There is no small or big help. The word there is help. No prefix.

With the present 'gifts' showered upon us, I know I have to be a good steward of everything I have. No matter how insignificant it is in comparison to what others have. I know I have to share. My mentor often tell me that we have to give back to the society. Because we can be an instrument to someone else's needs. We can be a blessing to others.

We give our tithe to our churches. We support an organization we believe their cause. Because we are blessed in so many ways that we can spread it to others as well. There is no measurement of joy when you know within yourself that you are able to help.

I saw the following verse and thought of sharing in this blog.

6:19 "Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust consume and where thieves break in and steal;

6:20 but store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust consumes and where thieves do not break in and steal.

6:21 For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.

Matthew 6:19-21

I know from the very start that accumulating worldly wealth in this world are not something I can carry into the other world. When I die, I will be like the others who turn into dust. And just as nothing.

So why not share while enjoying the journey to financial freedom? Afterall, when we achieve the financial freedom we dreamt and look back how we attend it, we may be disappointed when all we do was hoard money all by ourselves. Plus, when we give, though we don't expect something in return, we are more blessed. And the satisfaction we can feel is nothing to compare.

Remember that we have a life span. Life is too short not to show our worth as unique individuals in our stay. We can always make a difference.

Just sharing. Smile. :)