My sister and I talked via chat and voice call for six hours or more. Can you imagine that or, rather, can you beat that? Since we were young, it’s been our habit to talk for longgggg hours, until dawn. Now that we are overseas apart, our world is made smaller by the Internet. We still talk nonstop.
Now, we are talking about financial freedom. If before, we loved to talk about intellectual things or things that would make us brilliant, our minds now have undergone a different path. We love to talk about money, business, and retiring young.
Financial freedom. This is the freedom that enables us to move from one place to another, the freedom that enables us to buy what we want, the freedom that would make our present more enjoyable and comfortable, and our future secured.
The school system won’t teach us about financial literacy. Some schools would do that during the tertiary years, but not during the primary years or secondary years, which are crucial for the youngsters in developing their financial quotient (FQ). While some people are lucky enough to learn how to be frugal, and how to have entrepreneurial spirits at an early age due to their upbringing or their exposure to the world of business, others learn the hardest way before they learn how important it is to be financially free.
The other night, my sister and I were previously talking about our life paths, the directions that each one of us is tracking. I remembered mentioning a lot of interests. Although I already have determined what I really want from life, I still mentioned a lot of things on the side. I can multitask, that’s what I was thinking then.
Today, when we talked for longer hours about the true sense of financial freedom, that is, minding just one thing at a time before entertaining other things, to be able to maximize a person’s true potential. She narrated to me about what she read in the magazine on the wealth of our very own world renowned boxing champion, Manny Pacquiao, 30, I couldn’t just…BREATH…US$20Million dollars annually! Whoa. Some would say it’s luck that brought him the fortune. But whoa, it’s about focusing on that SINGLE thing, which is his STRENGTH – his boxing skills.
FOCUS. How important it is for us to know at an early age THAT ONE THING that would make us unique, that one thing that would make us stand out from the crowd, that one thing that would translate our skills to money, and eventually, think of ways for that maple money to have multiplier effects!
On a related note, I read the other day the CEOs around the world, who are so successful in their endeavors even without college diplomas! Do we need college degrees to be very successful in life? Do we need much higher education to do that? Uh-oh. I am very much attuned with my intellectual pursuits. I won’t make a comment on these questions I am posing here. But one thing I say now, I am very much determined to establish my financial freedom.
At this stage of being a new mommy, I am equally determined to teach my child the value of financial literacy. At 0 age, I am already saving money for her, which I would teach her to continue, when she reaches the age of two..three..and counting.
Thanks to that awakening chat I had with my sister.
