Maids Can Invest in the Stock Market, Why Can't You?

Last week, I wrote about how to open PDF files on iBooks, and gave away a copy of Brother Bo Sanchez' free e-book entitled "My Maid Invests In The Stock Market... And Why You Should, Too!". As promised, I will be sharing my thoughts about this e-book, and how it has affected my mindset when it comes to investing in the stock market.

Before reading Brother Bo's e-book, I was already investing in the stock market, or should I say, trading in the stock market. I started with a capital of Php1,250 and was only able to buy the minimum board lot of one of the blue chip companies here in the Philippines. Fast forward two and a half years later and out came this ebook with a really catchy title. I mean, really? Maids? Investing in the stock market? Yeah, right! But after reading the whole thing from cover to cover, multiple time, I was kinda wishing Brother Bo published this e-book one year earlier, back when the economy was still down and most stocks were cheaper.

But let's not dwell with the past and just try to move forward. Through this e-book I learned that Money Cost Averaging is actually feasible in a rising any market. I've never liked this investing strategy, partly because, it requires a lot of discipline, and more discipline. But experience has taught me that cost averaging actually works. Details will be discussed in a future post.

"Be fearful when others are greedy, and be greedy when others are fearful." This is one of Warren Buffett's rules on investing, which was quoted in the e-book. Why did I highlight this? Because when others were fearful (because of the global economic crisis), I WAS TOO! And it cost me. It cost me a lot. Let's charge that to experience. "How much of a lost opportunity was it?", one might ask. Here's how much:

• MEG was worth around fifty centavos per share back in early 2009, today it is worth around Php 2.50.
• AP was worth around five pesos per share back in late 2008/early 2009, today it is worth around Php 25.00
• DMC was worth around five pesos per share back in late 2008/early 2009, today it is worth around Php 33.00

In addition to these two valuable lessons, Brother Bo gave us a freebie by actually listing down some stocks that he recommends (this was then only available to Truly Rich Club members). Here are the YTD performances of some of them: 

Notice that the stock prices of most of the companies listed in the e-book rose pretty high. Their growth rates beat interest rates of bonds + regular savings + time deposit accounts combined. For the one that didn't, well, it gave out huge cash dividends. :D

In a nutshell, "My Maid Invests In The Stock Market... And Why You Should, Too!" is a good read. Had this book been published one year earlier, it would have made a big difference in my net worth. But this is not about me. It's about you, my dear readers. This e-book makes you realize how easy it is to invest in the stock market. And how instrumental stock market investing could be to the achievement of your financial goals. Bo's maids can invest in the stock market, why can't you?

How To Open PDF files In iBooks (Free e-book included)

What's not to love about the new iPhone 4? It can call & text (no-brainer), connect to the net via 3G or WiFi, Video Call via Face Time & Yahoo Messenger, play music & videos, and run a multitude of applications, among other features. Oh wait, there's one more thing, the iPhone 4 also has an e-book reader, aptly named "iBooks" (iBooks is also available on iPhone 3G/3GS, iPod touch 2G/3G/4G, and iPad).

I love iBooks, not because I can store tons of e-books on my iPhone, but because I can download PDF files or e-books in PDF format from the net, and open them in iBooks. Let me show you how. In this demo, I am going to do the following steps:

1. Open Safari from iPhone
2. Input the following link in Safari's address bar: http://bit.ly/aFZ3GJ
3. This will download Brother Bo Sanchez' free e-book entitled "My Maid Invests in the Stock Market... And Why You Should, Too!"
4. Click Open in iBooks (see screenshot 1)
5. iBooks will launch and should display e-books 
6. Select My Maid Invests in the Stock Market... And Why You Should, Too!

Click Open in iBooks

E-book is now displayed in the iBooks library

Read pdf from iBooks

Congratulations, you have successfully added a PDF file to your iBooks library. If you already know how to this, well, at least you got a free e-book, right? Get e-books by Bo Sanchez and lots more here. Enjoy this free e-book and let me know your thoughts about it. I'll be sharing mine in my next article.

That's all for now. If you liked this post and want to learn more techie and financial stuff, please subscribe to Richardson Consulting. Thanks!

Create Money Machines

One fine day not so long ago at work, my friend Fina and I were talking about how we've been doing, financially speaking, especially during the times when the economy was down, when she introduced me to the works of Brother Bo Sanchez. The curious little boy that I am, I googled him up, subscribed to his daily newsletter, checked out the Truly Rich Club, and read some of his free e-books. Months later, I, along with my fiancé, was able to attend Brother Bo's "How to be Truly Rich" seminar, in which, we also bought his latest best seller "Choose to be Wealthy".

What I particularly liked about "Choose to be Wealthy" was the power talk CD that came along with it. The talk was entitled "Create Money Machines". I'd like to share my reflections about "Create Money Machines" and hopefully, this entry wins me three tickets to the next "How to be Truly Rich" seminar on November 13th so I could bring along two of my friends. =)

I have heard the "Create Money Machines" power talk on my iPod many many times and I never get tired of listening to it. Why? Because in a way, it serves as a reminder to me of the "Whats and Whys" of my life. What am I gonna be after X amount of years? What am I gonna do with all the millions billions I'm gonna earn? Why am I investing in the stock market? Why would you buy an expensive condo unit? Etc. Listening to "Create Money Machines" answers all these questions and it keeps me in the right direction into achieving my goals.

Okay, just to be clear, I am not earning billions, yet. But I will. Very soon. Anyway, since we are talking about money machines, let me share mine, why I chose them, and their performance:

• Equity Mutual Fund - my first dive in the investing world was in the form of a equity mutual fund. I chose to invest in an equity mutual because I have a long term outlook and I had the risk tolerance for it. After 3 and a half years (recession years included), my equity mutual fund has gained 59% 
• Balanced Mutual Fund - I went for a little diversification and chose a balanced mutual fund that was just 2 months old. After 3 years and two month, my balanced fund has gained over 90%
• Variable Universal Life - If Suze Orman read this, I'd be getting a Suze Smackdown. But anyway, I invested in a VUL to protect my loved ones. This is basically a money machine for them just in case my manual machine (me!) shuts down for good.
• Stock Market - investing in the stock market was easier, cheaper, and more convenient than investing in mutual funds (less legwork, online accessibility), and it has a relatively higher rate of return (which, of course, also means, higher risk). My current portfolio has a paper gain of around 30% as of this writing. 
• Real Estate - my fiancé and I bought a pre-selling condo unit to live on for a few years before renting it out. Ground breaking hasn't even started yet but the condo's value already increased 3.9%

If you wanna learn how to create your own money machines, grab a copy of Bo Sanchez's latest book "Choose to be Wealthy" and also, if you like this post, please subscribe to Richardson Consulting. Thanks!