Welcome to this "ABOUT PAGE!"

Email me if instead if you have specific question --> call me Omeng - pinoyinvesting@gmail.com.

If you're new to investing or to stocks, you'll want to know that this blog has been written to serve you. 

The goal is pretty simple - to cover the basics and essentials of stocks investing and help you help yourself in your financial life.

Initially I just wanted to give back the fun I had investing in the stock market by sharing the fun with you (yeah, investing should be fun).

But on the other side, I’m afraid I might be giving you an incomplete picture of what stock investing is all about. I might be pushing you into the realm of gambling in the stock market as opposed to investing. As you know, gambling should not be encouraged, more so in public.

But just to help you get started, I managed to go on and compiled all the practical learning I had from my own experience. So in effect you're saving yourself from possible mistakes (and financial losses) you could have by reading this blog.

Make no mistake. I don't claim to be perfect at investing. Like you, I continue to learn (and I like it that way).

But if you want your money to start working for you one day soon, allow me to sing your first lullaby. 

I’m glad to be part of your financial journey!
Run on!

Now on to "About me".

You see, I had a very poor relationship with money before.  And I now realized it was a combination of three reasons.

First, I came from a poor family.

My father was working as a taxi driver. To augment that income, my mother took a janitorial job. Still, their combined income was hardly enough to make the ends meet. How could you expect their minimum income to cover sending three children to school?

Later on, my older sister had to delay her college so that my older brother could continue his education. Fortunately I received a government scholarship grant that covered my college tuition with monthly allowance.  In all those years, I was trained to live a simple life. Or better yet, I had no choice but to learn the ropes of a simple-but-most-of-the-times-lacking life.

Second, the type of surroundings I grew up in for two long decades had also stained how I viewed wealth.

We never talked about money in our family simply because we didn’t have it. I couldn’t recall a single discussion about building a business. I didn't even have an idea of how bank deposits works.

All I was hearing was how my mother would try to do all the tricks and magic to cover all the family expenses with their meager salary which comes every week. We were used to our limited resources. But in the process I became financially ignorant. Worse, I became limited in my dreams. My vision was contained in a small world opened up to me.

The third and last reason is that I had really terribly awful beliefs about money.

I subconsciously saw well-off people as greedy oppressive group. I guess I got that from watching night TV series that would almost always have similar plot. A poor lady meets this young man who belongs to a wealthy family, who would then do all means to cut the relationship, revealing their wicked character.

Then on weekends you hear a Sunday preaching telling you to stop thinking about making money. That money won't make you happy. That money is the root of all evil. So eventually I had problems combining money and God. If God saves the poor, who would save the rich? So why should I be rich?

I was trapped.

After being bombarded by those kinds of thoughts for so many years, I was "effectively" and helplessly conditioned not to desire to have money, to be a poor receiver and to limit myself in being small, without being aware of it. Sure I had my own child dreams, but those are as small as the possibilities presented to me.

It went so deep into my beliefs that when I finally graduated in college and shortly landed on my first job, a strange fear came creeping into myself thinking that I might forget the values I have once I started earning by myself. That I might be controlled by money instead of I being able to handle it. I was totally afraid of money!!

Then that fateful day happened.

I came across this book by Bo Sanchez - 8 Secrets of the Truly Rich.

I was hesitant at first to read it. It was pure struggle. But after reading one chapter after another, munching its message with struggles at the start, my beliefs was slowly changed. Slowly my mind was unlocked to more opportunities. I felt I was finally given the divine permission to be truly rich for the right reason, for love.

It's the same message I've been hearing in The Feast, the weekly gathering of Light of Jesus Family.  We're asked to dream big, not out of selfish ambition but out of love. We're asked to put constant actions on it, but still relying in God's grace for His perfect plan and timing.

In hindsight, I now realized that God has allowed me to go through such a journey to prepare me in the blessings that would come my way. In all those years, God has been molding me and forming my character in the next phase of my life. Since I knew the feeling of being poor, in being in need, I can now appreciate God's wealth more. Since I lived in a state of lack and scarcity, I can now cherish and welcome God's abundance even more. And now I'm saying "Yes" to God's blessings.

Blessed to be a blessing!

Now I have a supportive relationship with money. Working in the corporate world for two years, I am delighted to have hundreds of thousands in my investments now. I'm also blessed to have additional passive income which began interestingly when I started tithing. It may be small for some, but I am more than happy to have that kick-off at this planting season of my life.  But more than the figure, the enlightenment and God's grace behind it gives me the real fulfillment from it. It's not just about having that lump of money, but being a better and more responsible steward of blessings God has gifted me.

I can now have that priceless joy in providing for my family. Because God has given me, I am also able to give. Because I'm blessed, I am blessing others.

Finally whenever someone asks me about my financial life, I would jokingly answer "sapat na sa tatlong pamilya".

That's somehow my self-reminder that whatever material blessings God gives me should provide for my three families: for the family God had given me and the one I would be called to have in the future, for the spiritual family that nourishes my soul and expands God's work on earth, and for my bigger family with my brothers and sisters in Christ.

And as I continue to expand my territories and focus on my dreams, I am so thankful and grateful to the Lord for giving me the ability to create wealth, the power to multiply it, the heart to share it and the wisdom that ultimately, real wealth is found only in His presence, in His love, in His everlasting embrace.

To God be all the glory!

Omeng \_(",)/

PS: The person who was once allergic of money is now an advocate of growing and multiplying it!
Enjoy reading this blog!

PS2: If you're new to this site, you can check out this page specifically made for you.  

I wish I could help you not just in the early stage of your stocks investing journey, but also in every succeeding steps of the way.
Send me an email if you have other help needed --> pinoyinvesting@gmail.com. 

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COL Financial 2013: First Half Technical Outlook

A must read for all traders out there - COL Financial 2013 First Half Technical Outlook!

Click here

Have fun investing (through rain or shine!)

Omeng \_(",)/

PS: For beginners, download your free copy of Bo Sanchez' My Maid Invests in the Stock Market... And Why You Should Too [PDF]. Click here to download! 

If you're just starting to invest, download this FREE practical ebook to guide you in every step of the way - Investing in Philippines Stock Market for Beginners!

[Article] Secrets of Filipino tycoons revealed

Secrets of Filipino tycoons revealed

 (by Cathy Rose A. Garcia, ABS-CBNnews.com)

MANILA, Philippines - Henry Sy, Lucio Tan, George Ty, John Gokongwei, Andrew Tan and Manuel Villar are some of the richest people in the Philippines. 

What is the secret to these tycoons' success? Wilson Lee Flores, a veteran journalist who has interviewed the country's top tycoons, recently shared some anecdotes that sheds some light on how they became the wealthiest men in the country. 

Photo credit

In an interview on ANC's On The Money last Wednesday, Wilson said many of these tycoons went through difficult times when they were young. 

"I noticed one thing that tycoons, including tycoons in the Philippines, have in common is that many of them have gone through some hardships, whether personal, financial or family," he said. 

"(Metrobank owner) George Ty told me, 'everyone who wants success should be able to pay the price whether in terms of hard work or discipline'." 

Tycoons such as Lucio Tan, Villar and Gokongwei share a similar rags-to-riches story. 

"Lucio Tan and Manny Villar are from the school of hard knocks. They are self-made men... Lucio Tan did not finish college so he went to night school every night but he compensated by working very hard and always reading a lot. He reads a lot of Chinese history and philosophy... Manny Villar is a self-made man who came from a poor family but he went to one of the best schools in the country UP," Flores noted. 

Villar, a senator and one of the biggest property developers in the country, was born to a poor family in Manila and helped his mother sell fish in the market. Last year, Forbes estimated Villar's net worth at $720 million. 

Gokongwei, who owns Robinsons malls and Cebu Pacific, was born to a wealthy family but after his father's death, he had to drop out of school to sell rice and scrap metal. The net worth of the JG Summit founder was pegged at $3.2 billion. 

"(Gokongwei) is not just hardworking but one thing I admire about him is that he is probably the most well-read tycoon in the Philippines... He studies non-stop even though he was a high school dropout because he was poor," Flores said. 

Frugality

Another common trait of tycoons is their sense of frugality. 

"Frugality is already inculcated in the Chinese culture. One of the tycoons I know, she said throughout her life she has never bought any designer clothes and she's one of the wealthiest in the country," Flores said. 

Andrew Tan, who owns Megaworld and the Philippine franchise for McDonald's,  used to walk to school because he wanted to save his jeepney fare. His net worth is now estimated at $2.3 billion.

"He used to walk to school to save on jeepney fare... But when you meet him, akala mo he's the son of a wealthy person, he's very refined, and well-off type," he said. 

Even Lucio Tan, the second richest man in the country with a net worth of $4.5 billion, didn't fly business class or first class on planes. 

"Before Luico Tan became PAL owner, he never flew business or first class. He always rides economy class... I heard one time his executives were in business class and he was in economy," Flores said.

When Gokongwei was a young businessman, he still kept on renting a home, instead of buying one. 

"He told me a lot of businessmen in the Philippines, the first thing they do when they become wealthy is they build a big house. His thinking is, inuuna muna niya factories and businesses and he didn't make the house a priority... He would prioritize building factories since they were cash cows," Flores said. 

While the tycoons are frugal, it is never to the point of depriving themselves of life's pleasures. 

"They lead simple lives," Flores said.

Discipline 

Many of the top tycoons are also very good with time management and are very disciplined. Some tycoons like Gokongwei and Ty don't attend any evening parties or social events, and are very athletic. 

Ty, the founder Metrobank whose net worth is $1.7 billion, is very disciplined about swimming every day. "He swims every day for half an hour. He's been swimming since he was in his 20s and now he's 80," Flores said. 

"Gokongwei does the treadmill and swims. He also takes a 20 to 30 minute nap, which I think recharges him. He works Monday to Saturday," Flores said. 

Filinvest's Andrew and Mercedes Gotianun, whose net worth is around $825 million, are also very low-key and private. 

"Andrew and Mercedes Gotianun are very low key but they are extremely hard-working. I heard they hold meetings at 6 a.m. with their executives. They lead disciplined lives," Flores said.

***

Have fun investing (knowing the secrets of the rich!)

Omeng \_(",)/

PS: For beginners, download your free copy of Bo Sanchez' My Maid Invests in the Stock Market... And Why You Should Too [PDF]. Click here to download! 

If you're just starting to invest, download this FREE practical ebook to guide you in every step of the way - Investing in Philippines Stock Market for Beginners!

TIP 3 - Easy Monitoring of your Stock Transactions

In this post, I'll be sharing another tip that I do.

This is not actually a tip for trading but one on monitoring side.

As I've shared in one of my lessons during the bull run, investment monitoring is an equally important aspect of investing. 

It's very important that we have a clear measure of how our investments are doing! At the end of the day, we spend time and resources to investing because we know we're getting something from it. So we better make sure that we actually do.

This one is very simple and straightforward using our email platforms. 

You see, my online stockbroker COL Financial sends various email to their clients as part of their services. So from what I received, I filter them into three email folders: 

(1) COL Trades
(2) COL Cashflow 
(3) COL Miscellaneous. 

The division is self-explanatory.

COL Trades folder collects all emails about each of my trade or buy and sell order that gets matched.

COL Cashflow folder collects all emails about, well, flows affecting my cash. That includes deposit confirmation, notice of withdrawals and notice of cash/stock dividends. Most of the times, I actually get surprised when I receive dividends I don't expect.

Lastly, the third folder COL Miscellaneous collects all email not falling on the two folders above.

They're mostly clients-invitations to market outlook events they regularly organize and holiday messages from the management.

With this tip, you can trace back all the transactions and summarize and consolidate it in one sitting.

Being in the stock market going three years, I felt this tip is more practical and time-saving than recording each of your transactions every time you make one.

Well, I actually did it that way when I was starting, and it wasn’t just sustainable for me.

Besides, the investing strategy I have now requires not that kind of monitoring needing frequent recording.

Once you have set-up your email filters (so that each email from COL will go automatically to its designated folder), you can set aside a regular schedule to check these folders and go through the emails.

You can do it every year, every six months, or every quarter. If you're more active and do lots of transactions, you can do this every week or month. Simply check your emails and put all your transaction amounts in your excel monitoring file.

Aside from this, you can also print a monthly statement of account you can download online.

The tip is really to make your email an easy-access database of your transactions (and a financial journal too). This can also give us peace knowing we have something in our hands to present to Philippine Stock Exchange (PSE) in case COL Financial broker shuts down (which I don't see in the near term).

You can also read and add to this discussion thread on how other investors monitor their COL funding transactions.

And that's our featured tip this week!
So far this is our third tip, with two other helpful tips below.
Tip 1 - Have your reserved cash       Tip 2 - The 8K rule

Have fun investing (knowing how well you're doing)!

Omeng \_(",)/

PS: For beginners, download your free copy of Bo Sanchez' My Maid Invests in the Stock Market... And Why You Should Too [PDF]. Click here to download! 

If you're just starting to invest, download this FREE practical ebook to guide you in every step of the way - Investing in Philippines Stock Market for Beginners!

Truly Rich Club Stocks Alert - Sell AGI

Just roughly a month after Truly Rich Club included AGI in its stock picks to-buy list, now I received a stock alert to sell it.

Here's the exact word from Bo Sanchez:
Sell AGI (Alliance Global Inc.) because it’s hitting our Target Price.
I can’t believe it: After one month only, I’m already telling you to sell.
From the proceeds, you can either sit on your cash or buy MER (Meralco).
Two reasons why we like MER.
It gives 3.5% Cash Dividends every year.
It won’t just distribute power, it will now generate power.
Oh, the market is crazy! It’s scary.
May your dreams come true,
Bo Sanchez

Photo credit

Exactly one month prior today, the club previously sent the Stocks Alert to buy MER and AGI.

Stocks Alert: Buy AGI and MER

I know a lot of TrulyRichClub members having been waiting for this.

In the past few weeks, we’ve sold some Stocks and so we’ve got cash in our hands.  And out of the six companies in our SAM list, only three companies are still below our Buy-Below price: MPI, FPH, and MBT.

 

Thankfully, we can add two more companies today: AGI (Alliance Global) and MER (Meralco).

 

Just divide your cash (proceeds of stocks we sold) into five or six months, and invest one part each month.  And add to this amount your usual monthly investment.  That’s what you divide into our two new Stocks, AGI or MER.

(You may also keep buying our older stocks MPI, FPH, and MBT.)

 

Happy investing!

May your dreams come true,

Bo Sanchez

You see, club members are actually well taken care of every single trading day.

While regular Stocks Updates are sent only every two weeks, you can still receive urgent concrete short actions steps, such as the one above, at any time wherever you are through its Stocks alert (Thanks to internet!)

While others are busy and taking lots of time to study (which is actually good), or keep on waiting forever, we choose to stand on the shoulders of giants, we leverage on the expertise of people who have practically devoted all their life into analyzing stocks investing… and make nice profits in their filtered process.

Congrats to AGI investors!

Have fun investing (while reaping your profits)!

PS: For beginners, download your free copy of Bo Sanchez' My Maid Invests in the Stock Market... And Why You Should Too [PDF]. Click here to download! 

If you're just starting to invest, download this practical ebook to guide you in every step of the way - Investing in Philippines Stock Market for Beginners!

PS2:  Are you joining Truly Rich Club because of these Stock Updates? Read on. 

First, what I actually like most in the club is its inspiring sets of audio files. The club calls it PowerTalks. And yes, for me, they're powerful enough to keep me going in my plans and dreams.

Listening to those (during commuting time), my mind and my emotions are urged to become one - which can be a very powerful drive. To add, our mind has its boundaries we can never contain. And the nice thing is that once something enters our mind, it can live there forever (which explains why it's critical to choose what you feed your mind!).

So while Stock Updates can be very profitable in the stock market, those are only secondary to me. At the least, they're short-term. Once you're done selling, that's it.

But cultivating one's mind can impact you in a much longer term, for the rest of your life, in the same way that your thoughts in the past have brought you to where you're in exactly now.

So if you're joining the club because of mere stock updates, take a second look.

You're staring at the incomplete picture.

In fact, if you'll just be persistent, you can get all the stock updates you want in various online sites (very limited though and might be come to you incomplete).

I urge you to think of its entirety. Because that's how the club is designed, drastically changing your life… by first changing your mind.

To try it out, check the details here.

PS3: If you also know of any other paid online subscription (related to personal finance planning and coaching) that you believe is better than what Truly Rich Club offers, let me know so I can also review and possibly share in this blog in the future.

An inspiring story - Are you Lola Penny or Lola Pilar?

Do you know the story of Lola Penny and Lola Pillar?
It's an inspiring story of Bo Sanchez about the importance of planning ahead and the value of time in investing.

But unlike other stories, it's one of the best stories I knew that can change one's life if you'll just allow the message to speak to your heart... and take action on it.

As always, you have the choice.

Read on and be inspired!

Enjoy the weekends!
Have fun investing!

 - Omeng

***

The Story of Lola Penny

I have a friend who retired 7 years ago.

       Let’s call her Lola Penny.

       Actually, her real name was Lola Penang. She took a vacation in America, when she came back, she was now called Lola Penny.

Lola Penny is a widow with 4 children and 6 grandkids.

       For 38 years, Penny worked as an accountant, crunching the numbers for her company. Because she was such a good accountant, she was promoted many times and became the manager of the entire department. 

And she was earning very well.

       But Penny told me that even if she was earning very well, she was living from paycheck to paycheck.

       Which brings me to a very important principle:Income does not equal Wealth. It’s not how much you earn that makes you wealthy. It’s how much you investfrom what you earn that makes you wealthy. 

Yes, she saved some money. But like most Filipinos, she saved only for the big expenses: She saved to buy a house. She saved to pay for the schooling of the kids. She even saved for the wedding of the kids. But she failed to save for the biggest expense of all: Retirement.

Like many, she totally depended on the retirement package from her company.

When she retired 7 years ago, Penny got P3 million. 

For the first year, it was heaven on earth. 

Every Sunday, she brought her grandchildren to the mall to buy them toys.

And when her children needed money, they’d run to her. 

“Mommy, can we borrow money to repair our car?”

“Mommy, we lack P20,000 for Junior’s tuition fee. Can you help?”

“Mommy, your apo (grandson) will compete in a swimming competition in Singapore. Can you pay for his plane fare?”

But very quickly, her money ran out.

After 7 years in retirement, Lola Penny was penniless.

This Isn’t Just A Story;

This Is Harsh Reality

Today, Lola Penny totally depends on her 4 children to give her money. But she knows that they have financial problems of their own.

One time, she overheard her daughter arguing with her Kuya (older brother) on the phone. What she heard tore her heart. 

With anger in her voice, her daughter said, “Kuya, it’s your turn to give money to Mommy! I’m the one who takes care of her at home! I’m the one spending for her food everyday! And I’m the one buying her medicines. Last week, I spent P3000 for her meds! My husband is already complaining why we always don’t have money!”

When Lola Penny heard her daughter complaining, she began to cry.

The painful words she heard that day were like many knives stabbing her chest.

Lola Penny felt she was just a burden to her children. 

And she wanted to die right there.

Here’s the irony: All her life, as an accountant, Penny was very good at managing the money of her company—but she never managed her own money. 

This is not just a story.

This is harsh reality: According to surveys, 98% of people aged 65 and above are just like Lola Penny.

       They depend on their kids, or they depend on their tiny pension, or they depend on charitable institutions, or they have to keep working—or they have nothing to eat.

       Only 2% of people aged 65 and above are financially free.

       Like Lola Pilar.

The Story Of Lola Pilar

       You can retire in two ways.

You can retire like Lola Penny or you can retire like Lola Pilar.

Penny is a pseudonym. That’s not her real name.

But Lola Pilar is no pseudonym.

Pilar is my mother. 

She is 85-years old.

Today, I give my mother a nice monthly allowance.

I do it not because she needs it, but because Ineed it. I need to show my love to her.

But in reality, my mother doesn’t need my money.

Let me tell you why.

Many moons ago, my mother worked in a small music store as a Cashier. Her salary was P120 a month. After working for 19 long years, she received a separation pay: A whopping P2000!

She invested that P2000 in the Stock Market. 

The year was 1966.

And whenever she had extra money, she’d invest in very well known companies. My parents bought the stocks of giant companies of their time: San Miguel. Ayala. Etcetera.

My father retired at the age of 65. He passed away at 88. For those 23 years, my parents sold a portion of their stocks–little by little—for their big expenses.

After Dad passed away, Mom announced, “I’m selling all my stocks.”   I was surprised that she still had P1 Million from that last sale—even if they were already withdrawing their cash from there little by little.

I asked her, “Did you sell everything?”

Mom said, “Yes, I did. Well, I left the crumbs…”

Crumbs?

“What crumbs?” I asked.

She explained, “Oh, I left the very little investments scattered in various companies. They’re very tiny. Nothing much.”

That conversation took place three years ago.

Just two months ago, I told her, “Mom, you’re 85. You better sell whatever you have left in the Stock Market. Yes, I know they’re crumbs. But just collect them anyway.”

She agreed. She called up her stockbroker and said, “Can you sell all the tiny stocks I have left?”

She was expecting P10,000. At most, P20,000.

But she got the shock of her life. The stockbroker told her, “Mrs. Sanchez, your stocks are worth P1.2 Million.”

Mom turned to me and said, “Bo, I’m rich!”

I told her, “Mom, you’ve always been rich. You just think you’re poor.”

Forty-five years ago, my mother planted P2000 in the Stock Market. And through the years, she planted little seeds of P50, P100, and P200 in giant companies. 

Because she planted in the spring, today, she isn’t begging in the fall. 

In her whole life, my mother never received a huge amount of money. She never inherited money. She never won the Lotto. She only built her wealth slowly.

Remember this truth I heard from David Bach:Wealth is not built in days; Wealth is built in decades.

There are two ways of retiring in life: Are you going to be a Lola Penny or a Lola Pilar?

God places the two roads before you.

Penny Poverty or Pilar Prosperity?

You choose.

**

PS2: For beginners, download your free copy of Bo Sanchez' My Maid Invests in the Stock Market... And Why You Should Too. Click here to download!

PS3: If you're just starting to invest, download this practical ebook to guide you in every step of the way - Investing in Philippines Stock Market for Beginners!

You can  also check this simple yet profitable strategy of Truly Rich Club of investing in this sample Stocks Update - Click here --> Strategic Averaging Method!