Overseas

filipino globe your money
November 2006
33
Too busy making money? Spend some time managing it well
TERRIE FUCANAN in Manila
Wealth does not necessarily mean
having lots and lots of money
— as most people would usually
think.
The financial advisor Manuel
Colayco, author of the Pera Mo,
Palaguin Mo book series, offers a
more substantial definition of this
often misconstrued term: “Wealth
is a condition where your present
financial resources can support
your lifestyle over a long period
of time, even if you do not work
to generate income.”
Even a middle-income earner
can be wealthy, as long as his
earnings complement his expense
profile. Colayco elaborates: “If
your living expenses are very
high because of your lifestyle,
or perhaps because you have so
much debt, then you would still be
financially challenged even if you
had P1 million.”
Colayco’s statement could
never be more applicable than
to Filipinos. We are known to
be hard workers, but we are also
financially negligent.
“Most people are focused on
making money, but they have no
real understanding of how to keep
and manage their money. For
some reason, people seem to think
that wealth comes only from new
earnings,” he says.
Because Filipinos are often too
preoccupied about making money,
Colayco says there is no financial
planning, making our quest for
wealth more difficult.
Misguided spending is
commonly seen among OFWs,
employees who suddenly got
promoted, and entrepreneurs
whose profits doubled overnight.
The thrill of receiving a large
sum of money seems to trigger
a person’s urge to improve his
lifestyle, but not his financial
position.
“Many OFWs come back with
hardly enough money to retire
comfortably,” he says. “Worse,
they end up with just the same,
or even less, than what they had
when they first left. Many have
perhaps been ill-advised with
regard to the money they have
earned.”
For all the money they have
made overseas, these OFWs are
hard pressed to gain financial
independence.
In his book Wealth Within
Your Reach, Colayco goes to the
heart of the matter: “Financial
independence is within everyone’s
reach. All you have to do is to
acquire the ability to reach it.”
The book is intended not only
for OFWs and retirees, but for
all income earners who wish to
manage their finances well.