In Defense of Rich People

I saw this article for defending rich people. It's quite true.

In defense of rich people

Closing Thought

I gave the closing thought for the Rockridge Toastmasters tonight. To tell you the truth, it was tough. The topic was technology and I could not for the life of me figure out what to do with it.

At the start of the meeting, I realized that perhaps, I was to find a quote about technology. Ooops!

Well, time for the storyteller in me to branch out and make things up again. It always happens. With Toastmasters, I always change my speech at the last minute. It’s not really the best because the content will not be so smooth. But, what the hay? I might as well do it. It’s not like anyone is going to be fired from a job.

Tonight, I ended up mentioning a scene from Battlestar Galactica. Two Cylons (robots) are walking. They are discussing the human captives. One Cylon said “Did you see his weakness when we took away the woman?” The second Cylon replied “Yes, but he was so alive. I wonder what it is to feel that alive.”

I asked the Toastmasters if they in turn were alive or just going through the motions. Did they lust, desire, or want? Did they live?

Then, I mentioned that I evaluated a tenth speech for the Toastmasters group. It was a special evaluation because the member did her final speech for the competent communicator award. I pointed out the emotions of the first speech. The nerves. The ennui of the fifth speech when most people don’t make it. And the tenth speech in which the speaker will “Inspire the Audience.”

It takes someone about a year to go through the program. But at the end, the program transforms lives. Just like what I am trying to do with my life. From rags to riches!!!!

Toastmasters Experience.

I joined a second Toastmasters club two weeks ago. Today was the first time where I had to give table topics in two clubs. In Club 4422, it was pretty tough. The table topic master surprised everyone by creating a competition. In 4422, table topic is usually reserved for everyone to speak. It was highly unusual to make it into a club contest.

I did not do as well since the contestants decided that whatever the topic, we were going to speak about our favorite restaurants. I thought that I did reasonably well. I tied for first. The topic was "Money makes the world go round."

In the second TM group, I spoke again because the group likes to incorporate new members into the Table Topics. The topic was second chances. I spoke about how everyone wants second chances. It was amazing being in front of a larger group, a more serious group. I joined the Rockridge group because they were of a higher caliber than 4422. My wife said that if I wanted to become a millionaire, I had to go to another level. So, I went out of my comfort level and began my journey to multi-millionaire.

Toastmasters has definitely expanded the way in which I communicate. I try not to care as much when I speak to people. They will think what they want. I might as well not worry about them. I should worry about me.

Hopefully, I can get my bronze level communications program completed by Dec 2007. With 2 clubs, it should be more manageable.

Do you want to be noticed?

Well, this week was a good one at work. I should say that because of the sensitivity in American work culture, I sometimes refer to my job as a political campaign manager. This is just a total illusion. I really don't want to tell the whole wide world what I do fro the simple reason that someone can call my employer and make some illusion about me that can get me fired. So, a lot of my jobs are illusions.

At any rate, I am currently employed as a political campaign manager. The boss made a comment this week. She mentioned that she really enjoyed my summary report and that she sent it on up to the big wigs in Washington so that the candidate can see. The thing that she enjoyed the most was that I brought in the positive as well as the negative of the campaign.

Thank you Toastmasters!!!! I learned from Toastmasters to couch the critic with the good. People will accept it better.

Toastmasters International

In my quest to get into the multi-million dollar level, I have become a double member of Toastmasters.

My first TM group does not have as many advanced toastmasters. But I like it because they also need officers and I can fulfill my officer credentials. The second, I had to join because they have a lot more advanced members. They would help me out in doing the manual training for advanced speakers.

The wife told me that if I write the hundred thousand dollar book and joined the TM group, I would have the ability to sell the book to everyone. And, this is the book that everyone will want.

There are many books on financial investing. But not one of them tells you how to get started. Right now is the time for us to tell our story. After years of hard work and pain, we reached the milestone. Up next will be the Mt. Everest of our life.

The first million dollars is the hardest one to make.

Bill Gates' Commencement Speech

From Bill Gates:

1. Determine a goal.
2. Find the highest leverage approach.
3. Discover the ideal technology for that approach.
4. Make the smartest application of the technology that you already have.

Beware of what you Think

Stress can lead to fat.

Seed Money Groups

The only way for you dear reader to believe me is to see the numbers. The only way for you to believe that it is possible to change your life is to see different people at the different stages of their lives. The following is a summary from Tuhan Joe Arriola of the last year's (2006) results from the financial groups that he conducts.


2006 SEED MONEY GROUP RESULTS

1. C.K.: She bought a house!!! She got a better job, a part time job grading standardized tests, and traveled to Canada. Remember; don’t cut things out of your budget…get an extra job to put away more money. C, is now on the path of doing the things she loves to do. WISHES: I wish for you in 2007 the ability to focus and concentrate on the one or two things that will grant you your desire for success.

2. M & R: Together, they will put away over $35,000 this year. Dr. R continues to be a disciple of Chevron/Exxon/Texaco, got a job teaching at a local high school and is working as a photographer. M wrote a book! She continues to be a landlord and hardly works at her cushy Berkeley job. WISHES: I wish for you the Prosperity that comes with visiting the City of Light. May love, happiness and joy fill your 2007


3. S: Ok Ok Ok…he is over 125,000 in cash and stocks. He relishes his opportunity to be laid off from work, so that he can brag about his good and bad news “I’ve got bad news I’ve been laid off. I’ve got good news I now have more time to think about making money.” WISHES: S, I wish for you in 2007 guts and determination as you take greater risks toward continued success.

4. T: She got engaged and is getting married this coming year. She went into sales last year selling pharmaceutical supplies. She is making more more and more money and she is not enslaved to a desk and cubicle. Hmmmm…maybe she should re-think getting married. WISHES: I wish for you in 2007 more than a memorable wedding…I wish for you a wonderful life.


5. D: He got engaged and is getting married this coming year. His 401k plan kicked into gear at Bank of America. He works part time at Trader Joe’s and is working on his Internet business. Hmmm…don’t think D…just count your blessings and marry that girl before she has second thoughts. You are a lucky man. WISHES: I wish for you in 2007, a deep understanding of what it is to be truly successful as a man, husband and someday a father, “if you put a roof over your family’s head and food on their table, you are a success…everything else is magic.


6. D: Dr. of Anthropology, Gura with the double daggers, the only person in our groups who is disciplined enough use Quicken successfully…made money. She made her goal of $15,000. To do so, she sold “readers” to her students and applied for grants that provided equipment and trips to exotic locals. So, where are you going this summer Gura D? WISHES: I wish for you in 2007 a “world class” prosperity…enough said, now start working on your project.


7. Y: She’s beginning to scare me…$32,000 this year…and in less than two years has amassed over $100,000. But, I still have not heard stories about this supposed trip to Hawaii…I’m still waiting. WISHES: I wish for you…you know what I wish…REWARDS and the enjoyment that comes from rewarding yourself for all your hard work.

8. J: He came into the Seed Money Groups already putting away $30,000 a year. He is driving up his photography business…the new specialty should be fur…ious. I must especially thank him for building my “redmalong website”, taking and posting videos on Youtube, and taking care of Simone while we were out of the country. WISHES: I wish for you in 2007, “appreciation”…few people understand your good heart.


9. J: Go USC…John finally came home from the glitz of Hollywood. He just started the Seed Money Groups. He is shooting “wedding video” till he directs his first music video. I have great hopes for J. WISHES: I wish for you in 2007…a change in your signature. All you need to do to glean the success you desire, is to change the way you write your name.

10. T: Well, in his first year, he took a huge risk. He left his father’s construction company and is now making twice the money in a specialty plumbing business. He became a Guro in Kamatuuran Kali and more importantly he saved $4000 to meet his first year goal. WISHES: I wish for you in 2007, a clear cut direction…when you develop this clearness of purpose you will find your way in the world …and of course I wish for you a trip to your homeland so you can interpret for me as I do Kamatuuran seminars.


11. P: I’ve known P longer than many of you have been alive. It says a lot to me that he still values my opinions after all these years. He has been a successful technical writer working for such companies as SUN and SYMANTEC, a homeowner and investor. He like me has gone through rough patches in our lives. WISHES: I hope to help you put away a lot of money…simple as that.


12. E: You accomplished, 1) a plan to reduce debt 2) a second job at coffee shop 3) a successful plan to borrow money to pay for assessments 4) renting out the condo 5) putting away a few dollars a month. WISHES: I wish for you in 2007 to see, to understand, to incorporate into your life that its not a matter of looking for quick fix answers to enjoy the fruits of prosperity. We are all where we are at in life because of our choices. As such we need to make better choices. The best choice is to organize your life in a way that insures, that “Prosperity” is the only RESULT.

13. K: The newest member of our Seed Money Group was brought in by the “trusted word” of Sherwin. “A man is only as good as his word.” It does not take money to make money. It takes the “trusted words” of a friend and a group that wants to make you successful…so that they have more players to compete with. K, put just a few dollars away each month…and you will be in the game. WISHES: I wish for you in 2007…CONFIDENCE…BELIEVE…AND THE ABILITY TO COMMIT TO ACTION, AND QUICKLY. Put away $100 for January reports and you will begin the path.


I have no regrets about the people who didn’t finish out the year with us. I hope they too do not have any regrets regarding the time they spent with us or the decisions they made to leave the groups. We learned from each of them just as we learned from each other. In the year 2007, I wish them the best and hope they find their paths to prosperity.


14. M
15. T
16. J
17. C
18. V
19. L
20. T
21. R


THE END IS JUST ANOTHER BEGINNING
Certainly, the rest of you, WHO SURVIVED can say that you are “playing the game” and that your “numbers” are up…

Sincerely
Tuhan

The Beginning Struggles

When I first started the money group with Tuhan Joe Arriola of the Kamatuuran School of Kali, I did not know a lot about finances. I could see a budget, even make one. But to stick to one was another matter altogether. I suppose some people's predisposition is to be able to be disciplined. I was not naturally born with discipline. I liked to rebel.

But the grain of truth that I knew was that I could not handle money. When my mother passed away, I received insurance money. But, I did not have enough financial control to take care of the money. In a few years, the money was gone. Well not totally.

$8,000 was used to pay off my credit cards. I then cancelled one of the credit cards because I knew that I did not have enough control of my budget. That actually hurt because through grad school and post-doc, I was basically limited to about $500 of credit a month. And I only paid that off because of my salary.

$5000 was used to buy a Nikon F5 and a 80-200 f2.8 lens. That investment has paid off in more ways than one. I was able to develop my photography skills.

$1000 was used to repair and purchase a refrigerator. I was silly when I was younger and I should have asked the landlord to just repair the fridge. But the fear in me did not want me to ask for anyone's help.

$6000 was used during the various states of unemployment which I went through.

So with this experience, I knew that though I had a Ph.D., I was not a financial genius. Of course, during this time, my monthly income that was coming in was something like $1100.

Let us contrast that with the SO. The SO graduated from Berkeley and began work making $35,000. Each paycheck, she put away $600. By her first year of work, she had put away $6000. In addition, she began putting away money in her 401K account. By her third year of work, she had enough money to try and get a condominium under her own name without the name of her parent's on the deed. I still remember that the real estate agent was impressed that a single woman could get a mortgage without anyone else on the title deed.

Granted, the SO's parents helped her out with the downpayment. But this practice is becoming standard nowadays. The point of the above paragraph is that the ability to save in three years allows one to accumulate $18,000 and if you were using the 401K, you can parlay that 401K to your credit such that you can afford a house.

What's the point of the story above. It's simply this. I hoped and prayed and counted on the fact that once I had a graduate degree in molecular & cell biology that I will make money. All that hoping and praying can sometimes not be enough. You still need the financial smarts to figure things out.

So you say to me that you don't have a financial TUHAN in the community to help you. If I remind you of you, then resolve to save $600 and max out your 401K if you don't have anything at all. That is a beginning. Then learn to budget.

Living with Fear

I suppose to a certain extent, fear is controlled by genetics. I have a feeling that a lot of my fear comes from my father's side. There were moments of my life in which I remember my father worrying about things. And it is not just simple worrying. The closest thing I can describe it is that I try to live every single possibility in a fraction of time. When deciding about a course of action or a situation, I live through and experience the whole gamut of the emotions involved. But usually, I end up experiencing the negative and the unhappy or embarrassing emotions over and over and over again.

Perhaps, there was a biological use for this in the twilight of man's development in the world. After all, perhaps only those homo sapiens who had the ability to remember the bad things through the emotion of fear were the only homo sapiens who went on to reproduce.

But in this day and world, fear only serves to stop a person from acting decisively or boldly. I often encounter this pattern of behavior at the law firm. Individuals know that there is an issue to be resolved. But they pass the buck or do not act because they are afraid. The issue becomes less and less manageable until it breaks the system down.

Everyone is afraid. It is difficult to overcome the emotions and the rush of hormones adrenaline and cortisol. But, the power of the mind is stronger than all the emotions. You can choose to control your thoughts. All it takes is to decide to choose happiness each and every single day you live.

At first, it will be difficult. You will be sucked back by your emotions. You will get lost in the despair and the agony. But always have a trigger to reset yourself. Find something that you can cling onto so that you can take yourself out of the emotional well of despair. For me, this has often been trophies. My achievements written on index cards. I read my triumphs and I get myself out of the emotional well. The triumphs do not have to be significant to everyone. The triumphs should be the small daily things that make life worth living.

Some examples of triumphs:
bowling a 150 game
getting complimented by someone
looking good in a suit
talking to someone
graduating from something, anything
completing a certain phase of your life.

Use the documentation of your life as a shield to cover yourself from the unrelenting pressures of daily life.

After some use, you will find that your mind can automatically take you away from all the pain and sorrow of memories. The next step then is to let go of all the physical reminders.

New Year's Resolutions

It has been a while since I have tried implementing into my life a new year's resolution. Partly because of a lack of discipline, I often rebelled against what I set out to do. Talk about destructive tendencies.

This year's top ten goals are:

1. Prosperity in the mind, body, spirit and finances for me and everyone I know. Spread the word that prosperity lies in the mind. Prosperity is a choice.
2. Continue to improve my health by walking in the morning and or evenings.
3. Continue being selective about my food choices. Tasting delicious Pinoy food is on the books. Just don't eat it for seven straight days. Choose leafy vegetables.
4. Continue to bowl with a goal of a clean game. The physical activity does me good and it will allow me to bowl with my father in law.
5. Let go of some of my older clothing. Donate them to the Philippines. It is nice to remember the good times. But, it is even better to create the good times in the present.
6. Become a teacher who changes lives. I began teaching at a city college. I hope to affect the lives of my students for the better.
7. Plan for the start of children in our lives.
8. Begin preparing for the next purchase of a house somewhere in Alameda. I already saw the Kapitolyo, the model house where I hope to live someday. It was about 3.4 million. I figure with a side business, maybe we can achieve it in five to ten years.
9. Continue to promote and explore my photography and consulting for college job.
10. Have fun!!!