Money Wisdom from my Mother

Kung maigsi ang kumot, matutong mamaluktot. As kids, this was our family's mantra. Yeah, we were not born rich and we had our share of "poverty" moments but i am amazed at how my mother worked her magic and stretched our family budget.  I used to hate how "kuripot" my mother was. But having a kuripot mom, well money wise, i'd say now, put me and my two others sibling through college, so i'm so thankful for that now.

I really to hope to be like my mom and be able to support my son until he graduates. In our country, it is in deed a feat to put through a child through college but the hubby and i are doing our very best to go on our way just to give our son the best.



My mother and i are on different "genres". My mom is a full time business woman while i am a regular employee. My idea of earning "on the side" is investing in stocks, uitfs or mutual funds, while hers is selling RTW, balut and other items. Despite this, think there is so much to learn from my mom. Take it from her, who managed to graduate her children and retire with a modest lifestyle.
Now let me share some money wisdom from my mother.

Create other sources of income

My mother is the queen of sideline.  I remember, when i was in kinder school, she would sell balut and penoy. We used to have a small backyard piggery. These are just a few of her racket to augment my father's income. She says it's best if you have several sources of income, in addition to father's, who is a government employee. My mom was not a  BS Entrepreneurship graduate, but believe me, she knows how to conceptualize and execute a business idea. So far, she managed at least three businesses that turned profit. She sees demand in the market, sees it as an opportunity and makes a profit in the end. 

Too bad, none of her kids inherited this trait.. haha But seriously, Inay, i do hope you can teach me this, how to make a business plan work.   

Eyes on the prize 

My parents were the masters of delayed gratification.  Little by little, they would save up for what they want - like a car or house renovation. Hindi uso sa kanila ang pag-utang at wala din silang credit card, they'd rather pay in cold, hard cash.  My parents would not buy anything unless they have actual money to acquire it. Example, they would wait until their money from paluwagan arrives before they actually hire people for house repair.

I guess what i need to learn from this is how to be properly motivated when saving up for something. To save up for some expense, rather than to buy it now and suffer paying for unplanned expenses afterwards.

Take it one small step at a time 

My mom keeps an old  carton box where she puts in regular amounts from her store's earnings to save up for an upcoming expense, like our tuition. Yeah, long before expense manager apps were invented, my mom has programmed in her mind how to save up for upcoming expenses.

"Start small, you have to start somewhere." That's what she said. I am intimated by the stuff i have to pay for nowadays. I am haunted by the upcoming education expenses, monthly dues, budget for housing, managing investments etc. Maybe what i need to learn from my mom is how to prioritize.  Since education is on top of her list of priorities, this is number 1 in her long lists of expenses so she makes sure to set aside something from earnings for this, months before she actually has to pay for the tuition!

Think twice before buying anything 

I used to get annoyed when my mom does not buy what i say we need right away. She always has to make sure. Whether it food items, toiletries or household items, she makes sure that what we are buying is truly needed.  My mom was the master of cooking with anything that's in the pantry. "Kailangan mo na ba talaga nyan?" Ubos na ba ang ganyan mo?"

She makes sure that every centavo she lets go of is worth it.

"Hindi tayo mayaman" 

I wish i can teach my son about money how my mom thought us. She made us realize that we are not as rich as some kids in our school but she does not make us pity ourselves for that. My mom instilled in us that money can be earned as long as you work hard and sweat to earn it. She involved us in the family business so we can see just how hard it was to earn. This way, my siblings and i knew just how hard working my parents were. They really involved us in the small family business. During weekends and summer vacation, i would always tend our RTW shop in the local public market. Our parents made sure that we spend time learning the ropes of the business.  This way, they taught us the value of money. In deed, money does not just grow on trees, money has to be earned by pure hard work!

I plan to do this strategy to teach my son about money. 

Choose your investments early 

No matter how tight money is, my parents managed to squeeze something for investments.  I am really surprised that despite my father's meager salary and my mom's small income from our store and while simultaneously putting us all three in school, they managed to acquire patches of residential lots here and there. Yeah, their idea of investments is real property. Value of those investments have more than doubled after almost twenty years so it really makes sense to invest early.

She also encouraged me and the hubby to invest. I always hesitate to commit paying for an investment because we can barely cover our regular monthly expenses. To encourage us, she would say "Lakasan nyo ang loob nyo. Maiaagaw nyo naman ang pambayad dyan, kasi pareho kayo may trabahol".

There! My mother is not a registered financial planner, but her advice makes sense right? Take that from a money-savvy person;)  She is really my idol when it comes to financial planning.