Reminiscing Cashflow 101

It was Saturday 8:00 AM and my mobile phone starts buzzing. Aaaarrrgghhh... I want to get some more sleep - until I realize I am late for the facilitation session I am supposed to conduct.

I am supposed to facilitate a Cashflow 101 game for some of our DLS-CSB COMLINK students. So I rush to the library to borrow the gameboard and begin our game. Of course, everyone reacts about how their salary compares to the other players! This game is definitely as close to real-life as it gets. :)















Leah is my co-banker. Look at how seriously she played her part - complete with serious-banker-glasses and all. All of us enjoyed receiving our first paychecks from the bank. :)
















The game wasn't always enjoyable and here is Francis trying to figure out how he is going to pay for his new yacht. :) He is comforted by either his sister or his wife - I couldn't quite figure that out. :) Later on, we were all laughing as Francis gets a baby. We suspected this was a result of this equation: Yacht + Bikini Babe + Francis = Baby

I was able to get out of the rat race first; followed by Kim; then Leah; then Francis; and lastly, Harbin. I like this game because even if the concepts remain the same, each game is unique and provides for new learning every time.

I have been blessed enough to learn more about financial intelligence through the resources of our Learning Resource Center at De La Salle-College of Saint Benilde; the hefty US$200 price tag probably prevents most people from learning through this game.

My first investment was a direct result of the realization that I had squandered my time and resources. By then, I acted decisively to "catch up" with new opportunities.

My first investment was a Bachelor's Pad unit at Cityland Vito Cruz Tower 1, near Harrisson Plaza and DLSU-Manila. I chose a 10 year payment term for my condo unit. This December 2007, I would have completed by 5th year of payments. Five more years, and this property is mine.

This property is very special to me as I was able to acquire it with virtually no money - I didn't even have enough money for the downpayment of this unit.

But through God's grace, and extreme belt tightening (read: I was not able to spend a single centavo of my Christmas bonuses for the last four years to pay for the deferred downpayment of this unit) I was able to afford this unit. I am now less pressured with my monthly amortization as I have rented out my unit. Currently, I probably pay about only 35% of monthly amortization. I am saving up for the downpayment of another property I am considering - I will probably have enough money by December next year.

I hope other people will consider making similar sacrifices TODAY to secure a better FUTURE for themselves and their families.