Well with Christmas just a few days from now (and the month of November is coming its end) -- I just thought about another issue of why many Filipinos tend to stay poor instead of getting out of it. I'm not saying all Filipinos should become billionaires but this post is all about at least making an effort in getting out of poverty. So what's another issue with many Filipinos that I have observed having grown up in the Philippines since the 90s? It's the issue of spending over one's needs than one's wants.
There's still that ongoing problem of the wrong notion of what it means to have lots of wealth. I remembered how often some people said so and so was automatically rich because he was driving a BMW and so and so was automatically poor because he drove a Toyota or rode a jeep going somewhere. It made me think of how some rich entrepreneurs aren't ashamed of riding a jeepney while you've got the less fortunate people who won't accept a Toyota (because it's commonly used for public utility vehicles) and insisting that they should get a BMW or Mercedes Benz. That kind of idiocy should make anyone facedesk and they don't have to be billionaires to see how stupid it is!
So how are people spending on their wants instead of their needs? I remembered the fear-mongering passed with inflation where prices have supposedly "skyrocketed" (such as lying that chili supposedly costs at PHP 1,000.00 per kilo) already yet you have a long line of people wanting to get the latest i-Phone XS. If it was inflation then shouldn't they save the money they saved for an i-Phone be more useful if they invested it in treasury funds, bonds, health insurance or time deposits as a security? It reminds me of how someone who was an i-Phone user ended up saying that he would rather wait for prices to drop before he gets the latest model -- it was because his i-Phone was still in perfect condition! Unfortunately, some of them just decide to buy it even when they don't need it.
There are also so many OFWs sadly remain poor. It's crazy to think how they came from abroad with plenty of money and they are still broke in a matter of months or even weeks. You have the family that relies on remittances (and in extension, loans that they can't even pay) rather than learning how to invest the remittances and how to avoid loan. Instead of buying stuff that they need (ex. improving the equipment at home or fixing their house) -- they choose to buy what they don't need. Anybody well-to-do whether one is rich or not may go bonkers if they saw someone that poor having a brand new karaoke, a brand new flat screen television, a Playstation 4 (or X-Box One) or a heavy duty airconditioner at the impoverished areas -- all the while said houses are really poorly maintained and they can't even pay for their necessities such as food, electricity and tuition. So it doesn't matter how much money was remitted because they just spend it for the sake of spending!
While it's true that spending keeps the economy running yet what one needs to understand the value of bank accounts. People should consider focusing on their needs first and save their money in the bank through different types of investments. Saving accounts for expenses while pursuing some safer investments such as bonds (which can be sold at the money market) and time deposits -- while saving stocks for later. Bank investments help the economy going round and round because businesses borrow a certain amount of money to finance capital and dividends. Unfortunately, so many people would rather spend and spend without thinking where it goes, right?
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