Are Further Studies Worth the Cost?

One of my good friends is attending an Ivy League university on a scholarship this coming September. But even with her partial scholarship from her hotshot university, she still has to shell out a staggering amount and since she wasn't born rich, her friends helped out by holding a fundraiser. However, even with what we raised for her, she is still several hundreds of thousands of pesos short.

She's leaving the country in a few days without knowing where she will get the rest of her tuition money from, and after a year, when she comes back from her studies, she has debts to pay off.

Which now brings me to ask, are further studies worth the gargantuan cost?

Are Further Studies Worth the Cost?

One of my good friends is attending an Ivy League university on a scholarship this coming September. But even with her partial scholarship from her hotshot university, she still has to shell out a staggering amount and since she wasn't born rich, her friends helped out by holding a fundraiser. However, even with what we raised for her, she is still several hundreds of thousands of pesos short.

She's leaving the country in a few days without knowing where she will get the rest of her tuition money from, and after a year, when she comes back from her studies, she has debts to pay off.

Which now brings me to ask, are further studies worth the gargantuan cost?

Guest Post: How to Be More Money-Savvy in Your 20’s and Why It’s a Big Deal

If I could travel back in time I would encourage my 20 y.o. self to begin developing good money habits ASAP. After that, I would shake that "poor student" mentality from my noggin and get a headstart when it comes to saving and investing. Really, when I think of all the crap I accumulated when I started working, I seem to die a little inside. What the hell was I thinking?! So if you're just about to embark on your first job, or are in the middle of it, start  building up these habits right away. You'll be heaps thankful that you did so down the road. Thanks Loren for the great post!

When you’re young and free it’s easy to put off saving something for retirement until later in life, though with retirement ages being pushed back further each year, unless you want to retire in your 70s when you’re likely to be too tired to enjoy your retirement, you need to start putting something away for the future now.

But there’s more involved than simply putting something away for retirement when you’re young – for now anyway – because many twentysomethings incur debts that hobble them for many years, many develop poor spending habits which are difficult to break and many never learn how to budget effectively.

To enjoy a comfortable future you must learn how to be more money-savvy. This is easy to do – albeit initially unappealing for most young people – since you just need to understand a few things about budgeting, saving and spending, and of course put what you’ve learned into action.

The Mortal Sin

I've started on my case study for my Registered Financial Planner accreditation and for this I tapped a good friend and her husband to become my very first clients. While going through their numbers, I was struck by just how much they are both earning from employment. I honestly thought I was already making a decent amount at work, but apparently, I was mistaken.

And then one brother has set up a second boxing gym, while another one is the sole provider for his family of four (wife + 3 kids), but he does this while staying at home and going on constant vacation breaks.

And have I mentioned that my friend and my brothers are younger than I am? :(

But at work, I'm the only one with a portfolio of investments. Also, when I whine that I don't have money, it only means that I wasn't able to withdraw cash, unlike some members of our staff who count the days until the next payday.

That's why I really should stop comparing myself and my financial situation with others. Doing so can only lead to two results, either I'll feel demoralized about my bottomline or I'll feel smug about my bottomline. Either way, I'm bound to lose.

So blinders back on, and eyes on the goal.

Happy Sunday y'all!

 

The Mortal Sin

I've started on my case study for my Registered Financial Planner accreditation and for this I tapped a good friend and her husband to become my very first clients. While going through their numbers, I was struck by just how much they are both earning from employment. I honestly thought I was already making a decent amount at work, but apparently, I was mistaken.

And then one brother has set up a second boxing gym, while another one is the sole provider for his family of four (wife + 3 kids), but he does this while staying at home and going on constant vacation breaks.

And have I mentioned that my friend and my brothers are younger than I am? :(

But at work, I'm the only one with a portfolio of investments. Also, when I whine that I don't have money, it only means that I wasn't able to withdraw cash, unlike some members of our staff who count the days until the next payday.

That's why I really should stop comparing myself and my financial situation with others. Doing so can only lead to two results, either I'll feel demoralized about my bottomline or I'll feel smug about my bottomline. Either way, I'm bound to lose.

So blinders back on, and eyes on the goal.

Happy Sunday y'all!

 

Building Up Your Financial Muscles

Really, the best thing you can do in your journey towards financial independence is to learn as much as you can about all things personal finance and its kissing cousins. In that light, here are two seminars that you might be interested in, one is on technical analysis and the other is on Cashflow101, the board game popularized by Robert Kiyosaki. Details after the jump.

Do you want to learn a simple system that help you trade profitably and avoid making the wrong Trades?

Learn when to buy and sell a stock and at how much to maximize your profit or minimize your losses at 7th RFP CPD talk on Technical Analysis. This seminar will feature practical trading strategy that covers the fundamental aspects and practical implementation of technical analysis principles and methodologies as used by dealers and traders in the financial markets. 

Date: July 16, 2014
(Wednesday)
Time: 6pm to 10pm
Venue: RFP HQ, Tektite Building, Ortigas, Pasig City

Regular Rate: Php1,500
RFP Graduate Member: Php500
RFP Certified Member: FREE

*Members of RFP Philippines need to register to on or before the seminar date to ensure seat. Failing to show up will incur Php500 penalty. To register please contact: (632) 263 3221; info@rfp.ph

What: Cashflow101® is a board game created by Robert Kiyosaki, author of the Best-Selling book, Rich Dad Poor Dad, to serve as a bridge from learning the Rich Dad concepts from the books towards applying those concepts in a safe environment first (no real money is involved in the board game, this serves as a practice ground). It is only through practice that the firm foundation of financial literacy is formed.

Next Schedule:
Date: August 17, 2014 (Sunday)
Venue: SM Megamall MegaTrade Conference Center, Mandaluyong City
Time: 1:00PM to 6:30PM
Price: P1000. Pre-registration is required.
 

Early bird price of P800 until July 15, 2014.  To reserve a slot, please contact claribelisip@yahoo.com

*Disclaimer: Frugal Honey is not affiliated with any of the organizers featured in this post. For questions or reservations, please address them directly to the organizers (details are in the post).

Building Up Your Financial Muscles

Really, the best thing you can do in your journey towards financial independence is to learn as much as you can about all things personal finance and its kissing cousins. In that light, here are two seminars that you might be interested in, one is on technical analysis and the other is on Cashflow101, the board game popularized by Robert Kiyosaki. Details after the jump.

Mid Year Net Worth Report

I honestly dreaded calculating for my mid-year net worth because with everything that's happened, I was afraid of what the figures would show. Let's recap.

Remember the next door condo unit that we were thinking of getting, and then decided not to anymore? After all the hemming and hawing, we ended up buying it after all. Now we are the proud owners of adjacent 30sqm condo units. However, in order to pay off my brother (the condo's previous owner), I had to drain our emergency funds AND take out a loan from my parents. So while my real estate assets doubled, my real estate related liabilities also doubled plus I also incurred some hefty personal loans. But on the bright side, the personal loan is from the Bank of Mom and Dad where the payment term is pay when able ;-)

The bottomline is that my net worth grew by 14.47% from the first quarter of this year (mostly brought on by the new condo unit), however, my liabilities (mortgage + personal loans) almost tripled.

Mid Year Net Worth Report

I honestly dreaded calculating for my mid-year net worth because with everything that's happened, I was afraid of what the figures would show. Let's recap.