5 reasons why I love basketball....

When I was in grade 7, the students were asked to write down what we want to be when we grow up in our graduation yearbook...some wrote the usual professions, i.e. to be a doctor, to be an engineer, to be an architect, etc....others wrote something in general like to be successful in life....
***
I had only one dream that time, and I wrote "TO BE A BASKETBALL SUPERSTAR"....not just a professional basketball player, but to be a superstar!!!

***
Of course, that didn't happen =)....but why do I love the game so much....up until now, I still play the game despite a surgically operated knee and a bad back....
***
1. Great team rivalries and great players....I grew up in the 80s and I still remember the rivalries between Crispa vs. Toyota....and in the NBA, between the LA Lakers and the Boston Celtics....I was a big fan of  "The Black Superman" (#2 Billy Ray Bates) and his dunking and highflying skills....Kareem Abdul Jabbar and his killer "hook shots".....

***
2. Its a team sport...I believe that each player has his own strengths and weaknesses....once he accepts and plays his role in the team, thats when the team gels and wins games.....this is applicable in real life, whether at work or in the family, each individual has a role to play and if he/she does his best for the benefit of the group, all goes well...

***
3.  I BELIEVE I CAN FLY...back in high school, there was this one game wherein I vividly remember that I was able to stuff the ball inside the ring with my right hand...I did grabbed the ring!!!...was it a dunk????....let's consult Mr. Wikipedia...."A slam dunk is a type of basketball shot that is performed when a player jumps in the air and manually powers the ball downward through the basket with one or both hands over the rim".....I can relate this to our goals in life....if we believe we can, then we will achieve....

****
4. YOU WIN SOME, YOU LOSE SOME....like in life, sometimes your the champion..sometimes your the "kulelat"...its really up to you whether you quit the race or get up and be the winner your destined to be....

***
5. Lastly, in basketball you play both defense and offense....sa financial planning ganyan din...(sorry ha, singit ko lang yun pagiging financial planner ko...)  =)....defense relates to proper planning, budgeting and minimizing your expenses...offense naman means having multiple sources of income or making your money work hard for you by investing in high-earning instruments like mutual funds, stocks, variable insurance, etc.....
***

We now have a Pinoy coach in the NBA.....I'm still waiting and wishing for the first Pinoy player in the NBA.....Go Pinoy Basketboleros!!!!


Hope this helps.


Ge

Gerald Cantor is a Registered Financial Planner graduate, a Certified Public Accountant and a Certified Internal Auditor.  He is also a Financial Consultant of Pru Life UK.  Ge is proud to be an ex-OFW, a "career-shifter", a "high-leaping" baller, a newby entrepreneur and most importantly, a "dedicated" dad of Gia (3yo) and Clarie (2yo). 

5 things I learned from a parenting seminar

Sometime ago, I attended a seminar conducted by Dr. Honey Carandang of the MLAC Institute for Children and Families.  She's a little bit controversial a couple of months ago because of the "Jan Jan" issue vs. Willie Revillame.  Jan Jan was a small boy who performed a "macho dance" that started the whole controversy....

Anyway, I admire MLAC's advocacy.  One of their projects is they go to poor barangays and teach people on how to be good parents.

One time I was walking in a not so nice neighborhood and I passed by a family.  The child (maybe around 4 to 5 years old) was crying.  And the father was irritated and he started shouting at the poor child.  He said: " put@$%£% ikukulong kita sa hawla pag di ka tumigil!!!"....=(
***
1. "Parenting is the most important of all tasks but its the most difficult and most taken for granted.  No one teaches us how to be effective parents."

I would say that parenting is really a full time job, 24/7, 365 days a year.  However, I understand that parents need to work in order to feed their families.  So what happens is the child is more often than not, being taken care of the yaya or by lolo and lola.  In some cases, one parent stays at home while the other works.  Uso na rin ngayon ang "houseband", not just the housewife....

As to parenting education, we normally just learn from our parents....there is no formal school really...good thing now, there are a lot of reference books and parenting workshops....

***
2. "Values are not taught, but are absorbed by children subliminally, unconsciously and effortlessly"

Although we teach our kids verbally to be nice, polite, kind, etc...iba pa rin yun nakikita nila whether at home in school or even on tv....so if they see a lot of negativity in their surroundings, may effect daw ito sa mga bata....
***
3. "Parenting must change as the child and the parents go thru different developmental stages."

For example, at 2 years old daw, the toddler is at his/her "NO" stage.  He/she likes to say "NO".....This is a start of limit setting.  If your overcareful daw, you instill fear on the child....its ok to have limits, but allow them to explore....
***
4.  "There should be consistent sets of limits for children.  Children need to be consistently learn the do's and don'ts until they become their own parents."

The four (4) C's of disciplining a child is Conviction (don't be tentative), Clarity (be clear, don't assume, say clearly to the child), Consistency and Consequence (each behaviour should have to have a consequence)...

Its good to DISCIPLINE a child BUT SAY IT WITH RESPECT!!!
***
5. Lastly, I picked up these nice MESSAGES FROM A CHILD TO HIS/HER PARENTS. Imagine na lang that your child/children are saying these things to you:  =)

• PLEASE BE HAPPY SO WE CAN BE HAPPY TOO!
• TAKE CARE OF YOURSELF SO WE DON'T HAVE TO WORRY ABOUT YOU!
• MY PARENTS ARE OKAY AND I MATTER TO THEM!!!

Hope this helps.

Ge
Gerald Cantor is a Registered Financial Planner graduate, a Certified Public Accountant and a Certified Internal Auditor.  He is also a Financial Consultant of Pru Life UK.  Ge is proud to be an ex-OFW, a "career-shifter", a "high-leaping" baller, a newby entrepreneur and most importantly, a "dedicated" dad of Gia (3yo) and Clarie (2yo). 

5 Things I Learned from the "Steps to Financial Peace" event

A huge congratulations to one of my personal finance idols, Mr. J. Randell Tiongson for the success of his "Steps to Financial Peace" seminar yesterday.  Its another small step towards the "financial freedom" of Pinoys!!!

I hope and pray that each person who attended the seminar learned a lot and WILL APPLY what they learned.  More importantly, since we discussed about the power of compounding, the participants will share what they learned to their families, friends or to any person they care about...It is with this reason that I am sharing a few GOLDEN, USEFUL and POWERFUL ideas I learned from the event....I hope Randell and the organizers will not mind.....

1. "The 70/30 rule:  If you want to have a COMFORTABLE life in the future, spend or consume only 70% of your income and save or invest the 30%".(c/o Randell)....of course, this assumes that your income is enough to cover your daily and monthly gastos...like rent, kuryente, tubig, pamasahe, pamalengke, tuition at baon ng mga bata, etc....siempre kung maiksi ang kumot, matutong mamaluktot....at kung kulang naman ang kita, kailangang matuto ring "rumaket" o "magsideline" para lumaki ang kita....

2.  Taas nuo pa rin ako dahil ang Pinoy ay masipag at matiyaga saan man dako ng mundo magtrabaho....However, masakit pero mukhang tutuo nga ito....."Do you know that the savings rate of our Asian neighbors are very high (for example:  Singaporeans save 50% of their income, HK 33%, Malaysia 37%)..(c/o Randell)...while the Philippines has a savings rate of 16% only....Siguro kung may piggy bank tayo, ganito ang itsura....=)

3.  "Spend less than what you earn and do it for a looooooooooooong time then you will be financially independent.....c/o Jayson Lo.....Karamihan sa atin, we spend tomorrow's income today.....or we are not willing to change lifestyle when circumstances change...itong dalawang source or reason daw kaya tayo nababaon sa utang.....

4. Of course, the awesome Mr. Francis Kong was there too....I was touched on how he humbly mentioned what happened to his wife who suffered a minor stroke....di talaga natin alam when IT will hit us..so CHERISH YOUR LOVED ONES WHILE THEY ARE STILL AROUND.....he was as if talking straight to me when he said that "I should not let people keep phase with me...but rather I should slow down for the people who love me."  Sometimes we expect too much especially from our family members....I'm pissed and lose my patience very quickly if people around me are SLOW to my DEMANDS....this should not be the case....I learned that I should be SENSITIVE to their needs too....

5. Lastly, I would like to share some bible readings I got from the seminar.."Whoever can be trusted with very little can be trusted with much, and whoever is dishonest with very little will also be dishonest with much"  ...(Luke 16:10)......"All hard work brings a profit, but mere talk leads only to poverty..." (Proverbs 14:23).....so come on....Just do it!!!...

Hope this helps,

Ge
Gerald Cantor is a Registered Financial Planner graduate, a Certified Public Accountant and a Certified Internal Auditor.  He is also a Financial Consultant of Pru Life UK.  Ge is proud to be an ex-OFW, a "career-shifter", a "high-leaping" baller, a newby entrepreneur and most importantly, a "dedicated" dad of Gia (3yo) and Clarie (2yo). 

  

What Color is your Parachute?

A long time ago, I came upon this book entitled "What Color is your Parachute".  Its basically, as the book says, a practical manual for job hunters and career changers....it helps you not only to find a job, but find your passion in life.....I can distinctly remember a drawing in the book showing a boy or man in a crossroad...ahead of him where several pathways...his choices were as follows:  stay with current employer, look for another job, change careers, do own business, do freelance, etc......
****
In London, I met people who would go on "sabbatical leave" ...Let me quote Wikipedia on this..."Sabbatical or a sabbatical (from Latin sabbaticus, from Greek sabbatikos, from Hebrew shabbat, i.e., Sabbath, literally a "ceasing") is a rest from work, or a hiatus, often lasting from two months to a year. The concept of sabbatical has a source in shmita, described several places in the Bible (Leviticus 25, for example, where there is a commandment to desist from working the fields in the seventh year). In the strict sense, therefore, sabbatical lasts a year." (Source:  http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sabbatical)
****
These people who were on sabbatical would go on trips, or do voluntary work or even do another job not related to their current one..some take time off to really determine what they want to do for the remainder of their lives...Amazingly, their employers do allow them to do this.....Do employers in Manila allow this too???
****
Now lets go back to Philippine setting....most of my family and friends have been working in their chosen profession for their entire adult life....my classic example on this is my mom...she is retired now, but she started working in a government institution ever since she was 17 or 18 years old....and she never left and she worked there for almost 40 years...Mom was happy and contented...
****
The generation nowadays is a bit different....one type of  employee will have several employers in his entire career....he/she will go on job hopping from one job to another in a span of 2 to 3 years....their main reason is "career advancement".....
****
Another type of people are the "career-shifters" ...these are the people who are either brave or foolish enough to change careers in search of their passions in life...some are in it for the money...while others have more noble causes like "more time for their families" or "in order to help other people"....normally, their families and friends will not understand or even support them, initially....
****
Whatever color is your parachute is....I guess as long as your happy, contented, satisfied, accomplished, and fulfilled in what you do....Also, as long as your career or job will help you achieve your goals and purpose in life....by the way, do you already know your purpose in life???  =)

Hope this helps,

G.

Ge: When Driving in Manila

Ge: When Driving in Manila: "When Driving in Manila... ...you have to keep your cool ...all kinds of vehicles (i.e. buses, trucks, taxis, jeepneys, FX, private cars..."

When Driving in Manila

When Driving in Manila...

...you have to keep your cool
...all kinds of vehicles (i.e. buses, trucks, taxis, jeepneys, FX, private cars, tricycles, motorcycles, "kuliglig", "padyak", "tricykad", "bisikleta", "kariton", "kalesa") will cut on you left and right, but you have to keep your cool
...even when your super late with your appointment on a Monday or Friday morning, you have to keep your cool
...whether its raining so hard or its sweltering hot, you have to keep your cool
...even when a little boy keeps banging on your window to clean your windows for a few pesos, you have to keep your cool (sige na, bigyan mo na, in the spirit of "almsgiving") =)
...or si Manong is playing "patintero" in the middle of the road selling newspapers, candies, bottled water, LTO license plastic cover, walis, dustpan, etc. etc.... you have to keep your cool
...or si Manang who is carrying a poor baby who has no resemblance of Manang, you have to keep your cool

...even if you feel like going to the toilet already, you have to keep your cool (keep those fingers crossed!)
...even if you haven't eaten your breakfast, lunch or dinner, you have to keep your cool
...even when you forgot paying your bills and the minimum due of your credit card, you have to keep your cool
...even when you had a fight with your boyfriend/girlfriend/spouse, you have to keep your cool
...even when your business/stocks/income are down, you have to keep your cool
...even if you didn't make the sale or you didn't get the promotion you deserved after enslaving yourself for 12-15 hours a day, you have to keep your cool
...even when your reading a text message while driving, the text from the unregistered number goes like this:  "Hi, This is my new cellphone no. Kamusta kayo dyan?  Please send me load", you have to keep your cool!!!
After all, Manila is still and will always be cool!!!

Hope this helps,

G.

Britglish 101

Since its been "bloody" raining a lot here in Manila, which is similar to London weather, why don't we learn some basic Britglish o British English...hey, sorry if its a little late for the Harry Potter enthusiasts...

We Pinoys, have learned American English in our schools...I thought English is the same everywhere....but not really...here are some examples of Amglish/Taglish vs. Britglish....

a truck is called a lorry....
a cellphone is a mobile phone...
trash is rubbish....
a fag is a cigarette...
a taxi is a cab....
a pal/friend/dude or "pare" to them is a mate or chap...
slippers are flipflops...
they don't know "rubber shoes"....you should say "trainers or tennis shoes"... 

to "fall in line" is to "queue"... *****
you don't say "san ang CR?"....but "where is the loo?" (plus don't hold your tummy as if signalling you want to poopoo)
when they say "see you later"...it doesn't mean "kita tayo mamaya"...it means see you when I see you...or see you "whenever".....
when you ask for "water" in a restaurant....pronounce water like WA_EHR...silent T plus don't stress on the R..
please don't ask for a TOILET PAPER when your in McDonald's while ordering at the counter...say tissue or napkin....=)
when you say my "pants" are wet....it means to them your "underwear/brief" is wet....you should say, my "trousers" are wet....
*****
British pounds (GBP/£) is more commonly known as "quid"....
"no problem" is like "no worries"....

you can say "thanks"...but you may say "cheers" too..
lastly, the most important words I learned in London, are to always say PLEASE and THANK YOU.....polite, di ba?  =)
plus in their emails, they like to end with "Kind Regards" (I still haven't researched what this truly means).....

Hope this helps and kind regards,

G.

OFWs and Savings

When I went to London in December 2004 for an Internal Audit job with Ernst & Young LLP, the PH Peso to British Pound (GBP) exchange rate was a staggering 100:1!  Computing was a lot easier back then. So, for example if I have an annual salary of £35,000, this is equivalent to P3.5 million pesos...

As most all know, the cost of living in London was and up until now expensive....To save up, I have to stay in a tiny studio flat...it was so small that my clothes would smell like fried eggs or fried chicken everytime I cook.  Good thing I did not cook bloody "tuyo" that time....Aside from rent, my expenses back then include:  travel pass for my daily underground train commute to work, taxes like council tax (this is like municipal tax), tv license (yes, you have to pay an annual license if you want to watch tv!), food (groceries at Tesco's was my favorite especially if I have discount coupons), clothing (siempre dun iba ang outfit pag winter at pag summer)....

But my priority expense back then was to send money home for my family in Manila....I made it a point that every pay day (well, most of the time), I would send money for their household expenses...I was still single back then...in our family I was the eldest of 3 kings..Mom was the only one working as my Dad was already retired...my younger brother had 2 kids that time....with a struggling business to take care too....anyway, ok lang...basta I want them to be happy and have comfortable lives....

The exciting part was every December...as part of our Filipino custom, siempre dapat may "balikbayan box"...so I would splurge on "pasalubong" ....toys for my nephew, niece, inaanaks....bags or dresses for the ladies....shirts and shoes for the boys....perfumes for other friends....cans of chocolates/biscuits for the group pasalubong....never mind the cost....for me that time, what mattered was the fulfillment of making them happy during the festive seasons....

I would also save up all of my vacation leaves and go home every December....kase pag December, birthday ko at pasko.....so I would stay in Manila for a month....siempre, gastos ulit....lots of outings, reunions, gatherings....frequent trips to malls...more shopping.....karaoke, kainan, inuman with friends...lahat happy...

Ooops...this blog is about savings pala....thinking back, how I wish have read Money Sense before, probably I have known about savings and investments...how I wish I've met the likes Randell Tiongson, Efren Cruz, Henry Ong, Heinz Bulos and the Registered Financial Planners of the Philippines sana I did budgeting, and investing..sana I've met up with my agent before sa Pru Life para naginvest na lang ako sa variable/unit-linked insurance.....sana I did stocks with Citiseconline back then or mutual funds or real estate....imagine how big should be my investment portfolio now!!....well, that's the catch....as John Lennon said...Imagine!!!...

Well I'm now back to earth...back to my beloved country....I just want to say I salute our fellow OFWs/OCWs/Pinoy expats who sacrifice themselves, who left their families behind to earn the big bucks abroad....sharing and supporting once family is all good...kaya lang...sana they pay themselves first....save up for their own and their families future....remember the equation Income less Savings equals Expenses and not the other way around....study and practice financial planning...learn how to have passive income.....para everybody happy!!! =)

Hope this helps,

G.