Money Matters

I found my little notebook that I used before when I attended a seminar entitled "Money Matters". The speaker was Jerome Gutierrez and the seminar happened on September 26, 2007. 

It was the day that my mind was introduced to a great idea. It widened my perspective about money. It was the day that led me to look further and seek more wisdom about wealth and success. 

According to this seminar, there are seven keys to wealth and success.

1. Pray

Jeremiah 33:3 New International Version (NIV)

"Call to me and I will answer you and tell you great and unsearchable things you do not know."

Just like anything that we ask our Lord God, we can also pray to Him for wealth and             success. Our God Almighty is a generous God so let us feel free to pray and ask Him. He     knows what is in our heart and in God's time, if it is His will, our prayer for richness and         success will be provided. 

2. Read

As per  Psalm 119:15 New International Version (NIV):

"I meditate on your precepts and consider your ways."

There is also a quote that says: "Leaders are readers."

Reading is one way way of teaching ourselves. Many great books have been written by great authors. These books are just waiting for us to discover them and utilize it for our success. 

The speaker gave recommended readings about the money. These are the top five books: 

              1.  Bible

              2.  Automatic Millionaire

              3.  Rich Dad, Poor Dad

              4.  Why We Want You to be Rich

              5.  The Storehouse Principle

3. Tithe

Tithing is about faith and obedience. In  the Bible, God is teaching us to offer the ten percent of our produce. It is also a way of thanking God for blessing us with the ability to produce or work. Our life comes from God and so let us praise Him, glorify Him and thank Him through our lifestyle and one way is tithe offering. Let us also not expect something of what we give God, but surely God will bless us more.

4. Save

This is the old formula: Income-Expenses= Savings
This is the new formula: Income-Savings= Expenses

The old formula is being used by poor people, while the new formula has been the discipline being used by the rich people. It is not too late. As long as we can still work and earn money, we can also do what the rich people are doing and someday we can be one of them. 

5. Give

We have to be a blessing. God is a giver and He wants us to be like Him. Most rich people gives to the poor through charity works because they can. We can allot a portion of our income or profit for charity purposes. 

6. Invest

The savings that we get out of our income which is recommended to be not less than ten percent as well, must be invested. Investing is letting our money work for us. Be careful though. Invest your money to someone or to a business that you know will give you a good return. You must also pray and do research before you invest your   

The savings that we get out of our income which is recommended to be not less than ten percent as well, must be invested. Investing is letting our             money work for us. Be careful though. Invest your money to someone or to a business that you know will give you a good return. You must also pray and do research before you invest your money. Study well and find a mentor     who is successful so that you will be guided. 

7. Work

We can't just sit down and pray. We have to work and be productive in the         marketplace. We can sell our service or our product so that we can have income or profits.  

These are the lessons that I have learned from that seminar. I hope that these ideas would also lead you into further search and study to seek wisdom and wealth. I have been influenced by these lessons in a positive way. I am sharing this lessons and may God bless you with these lessons as well. 

             

Chapter One of How to Read a Book by Mortimer Adler 1966 Special Edition

I am a follower of Jim Rohn and one of the books that he recommended is the "How to Read a Book" by Mortimer Adler. The first thing that came into my mind was that it is a book for English reading and comprehension. However,after reading the first chapter, I have realized that it is not only a reading and comprehension guide but also a book for Personal Development. It is one of the self-help books. According to Jim Rohn if a person wants to grow and improve himself/herself, he/she must be come a voracious reader. The author has explained very well in this chapter the reason why a person must keep on improving the reading skill. 

The first chapter is entitled "To the Average Reader". On this chapter, Mortimer Adler is educating us that majority of the readers do not know how to read well. He explains in this chapter that the activity of reading is not simple and it requires practice and time to master. He also explains that reading very well is a source of wealth specially if we read great books. One can maximize the benefit of reading a great book if he or she is skilled in reading. 

The author said that the education system is not able to train students on how to read a book. He said that reading does not end in memorizing information from the book. He himself confessed that he was not able to really learn how to read a book until he became a teacher who is teaching students on how to read. He clearly explains in this chapter the reason why this book was written. Majority of the readers need to improve their reading skills specially if their job has reading activities. 

Mortimer Adler is telling us that we have to exert effort and spend time in order to improve our reading skill. He is telling the readers how important it is for people to read very well. Most people only read a book as a way of getting information. However, he effectively explains how people do the above average manner of reading. In the last portion of the chapter, he mentions that people do the right way of reading whenever they read a love letter. 

What the author is trying to explain in this chapter is that reading is very important for self improvement and that we have to invest our time and energy in this activity. He is promoting reading as a valuable skill that could be our source of wealth. This chapter implies that it is possible to apply the manner on how we read love letters whenever we read great books. However, just to set our expectation, it will not be easy but once we have the skill, it is rewarding. 

My Maid Invests in the Stock Market...and Why You Should, Too! by Bo Sanchez

I have been hearing about stock market since I was in elementary. I usually see it in news. I could not comprehend it before. I heard that it is like a gamble and that it is a thing of rich people.It is only for those who can afford to pay large amount of money. So I did not bother to know more about it.

However, I saw Brother Bo Sanchez' book "My Maid Invest in Stock Market...and Why You Should, Too! I was intrigued so I bought and read it.

I was enlightened after reading the book. I have realized that the concept is just simple. Brother Bo easily explained it in the book that even a kid would be able to understand it. I am glad that Brother Bo wrote this book. The book educated me about stock market and gave me information on how I could start.

I highly recommend this book. Go and grab your copy now.