When we were deciding which course to take in college, we often hear them suggest, “Education langenen ta nakapuy met ti ulom” (Take Education since you are not that smart). Then when we finally enroll as Educ students, we still hear others say, “Apay ngay Education, awan bumakbaknang nga maestro/maestra” (Why took up Education? Teachers won’t have any chances to be rich).
And you know what? As we graduate and start our teaching career of our own, these comments especially the latter still linger on our minds. Until we come into conclusion that they are indeed right that you won’t be rich because you’re a teacher. But I tell you, you are wrong and they are. You can be rich. You only need to do THREE simple things.
From my own readings and studies on personal money management, I’ve learned that the journey towards financial independence is not a complicated path to take.
It’s a simple 1-2-3 process that everyone can do. All you need to have is ENOUGH discipline and determination.
So, how can teachers become rich and be financially independent
1.Live BELOW your means: Spend less than what you earn
I haven’t understood how to live below your means exactly mean by then. I thought living below your means is to live like a pauper. But this is just simply paying yourself first by separating a part of your monthly salary as savings before you start spending the rest and living a frugal life.
2.Protect yourself: YOU are your own number 1 asset
How well do you protect yourself? As a teacher for 14 years I’ve witnessed fellow educators that succumb to illnesses which cause them be more in debt. Others are worse that they have no choice but to stop teaching because of their life threatening health condition. Although as teachers, we have sickness and disability benefits, I’ve seen real life stories of teachers saying that these still don’t suffice and that they have to sell their assets until they become financially miserable.
Protect yourself and your assets by saving up an emergency fund, getting a life insurance, health insurance that covers serious illnesses– don’t be satisfied with your Philhealth.
3.Invest your money and create passive income
You can be rich by learning how to grow your money. Learn which legitimate investments you can put your money in. As teachers for the public and private schools, we devote most of our time to papers works even after school hours and during the days of the week, we are too occupied with school responsibilities.
But with all these schedule, many of us still manage to do extra work such as private tutorial sessions, preparing home made products that we sell to our friends and collogues for extra income. Thus restricting us to have a little quality time with our love ones.
What if I tell you that there is a smarter way to grow your money and create more sources of income?
As teachers, you can achieve this by building an investment portfolio and creating products that can give you continuous income.
And those, my fellow teachers are the three simple steps that we can do to be rich.
But understand that there is no quick way to get rich. To accomplish these three ways that lead us to a wealthy future, it needs time, patience, determination to learn, and hard work.
To help you, I’m inviting you to read this free e-book on how to invest in the stock market by filling in the subscription form below.
