As the Philippine economy continue to provide more opportunities for the Filipinos, the earning capacity of our population has improved through the years. However, it is a well-known fact that increase in income does not always equate to financial empowerment and preparation if not coupled with proper financial education. Further achieving success is not just about financial empowerment but rather empowerment in the many other facets of life.

On September 29, 2018, I will once more organize an empowering conference to help attendees properly prepare for their future. The event is aptly called “Build Your Future” and this particular event is intended for the young professionals  through a practical and engaging half-day learning event.

I am so privileged to be joined by three amazing individuals who will all help the conference participants ‘build’ their future through the sharing of their expertise:

Ardy Abello on TOP PERFORMANCE: How to Become the Best Version of Yourself

Ardy Abello is one of the country’s leading motivational speaker and a John Maxwell and Strengths Finder certified trainer. He is one of the most sought after speakers and coaches on productivity, leadership and success.

Dennis Sy on BUILD A BETTER FUTURE: Doing Social Good to Build a Better Future

Dennis Sy is a a best-selling author and leading influential blogger and vlogger on manhood and life principles. He is the senior pastor of Victory Green Hills, a church which gathers 4000 attendees weekly.

Gabbie Tiongson on MOVING FORWARD: Designing Your Life Plan with Meaning

Gabbie Tiongson was student leader and a licensed teacher but has decided to focus on empowering students as a campus missionary. She believes in investing in the next generation.

The event will be from 1 to 6pm and will be held at the Samsung Hall, SM Aura, Taguig City.

Here’s why you should attend this life-changing event — the fee to this event is only P500.00 and it comes with my book Build Your Future Today worth P500.00! Slots are going fast so it is best if you sign up and pay to secure your slot because slots are running out fast!

To register, visit www.bit.ly/BYF2018

I recently guested in Antony Pangilinan’s show “Magbago Tayo’ at Radyo 5 (92.3) & Aksyon TV. My good friend and school buddy, and one of the country’s best training expert Ardy Abello was pinch hitting as the host as Anthony (also a good friend and school buddy) was in Davao.

I shared my thoughts on the usual personal finance stuff I usually talk about which was great, but I was delighted to interact with another guest who was talking about his new book, Productive Pinoy. The author was Yeng Remulla, a very young and successful entrepreneur who was also a former member of the famous band True Faith. Yeng’s book is an awesome way for us to review ourselves and improve our productivity. It is really encouraging to see young guys like Yeng taking the lead in helping improve Pinoys in general. During the hearty discussion in the show, Ardy and I was enthralled by the wisdom of Yeng — specially when Ardy shared an excerpt from his book. The snippet was all about how to stay in focus and Yeng’s 10 point recommendation hits the spot, bulls eye!

Here are Yeng’s priceless tips:

(1)  Phone in Silent Mode. Use the features of your phone. Missed call logs are there to help you. Don’t worry you can always return the call when you are ready. Don’t feel guilty!

Note: Don’t miss a call for an important event or a transaction about to happen.

(2) Ignore text messages during your Focus Time. You can always read it later. Don’t put it to vibrating mode either.

(3) Turn off your email notification app or your email app.

Close any window in your desktop that you are not using. Yes, including those Messenger and Facebook windows.

(4) Check your email two to three times a day only. Avoid checking your email every 10 minutes. Set time intervals. Set a few minutes in the morning around 10:00am, then check again around 3:00pm. Find out what time works for you.

This will allow you to reply to your emails in bulk, saving you time and allowing you to focus on other things. Besides, it’s more fun to answer emails simultaneously.

(5) Close and lock the door. If you run a home-based business, you’ll find it difficult to separate work and home. Decide to close doors. Consider that room your nine to five office. Let your family know that you need that “uninterrupted” time to get things done.

If you are attending to kids, set your FOCUS Time during nap time or while they are watching their favorite TV shows. In this way, the interruption is minimal (they forget about you when they are watching).

(6) Set a fixed schedule for your FOCUS Time. Make it predictable. Make the people around you aware of this schedule. This will lessen interruption. Let them know that this is your sacred private time.

(7) Your To-Do List must be within reach. Let’s say you are working on a project and your creative juices are flowing; suddenly, you remember something important that you need to do and it’s not related to what you are currently doing. This is how to proceed: Grab a pen and write it down on your To Do list. Then, forget about it and continue with what you were doing earlier.

Writing it down or dumping it on paper frees your mind from thinking about it. If you are running your To-Do List app in your computer, keep that window minimized or in the background. Pop when needed.

(8) Hire an assistant to filter your calls. Answer only calls that you need to answer yourself. Write an instruction on how to handle phone calls– give it to your assistant. This will save you time and energy.

(9) Finish all errands in the morning or in the evening.

Deciding when to do errands frees your mind from worrying about it. Block an hour or a little more to do errands all together.

(10) Go somewhere else. Leave the house or the office. Go to the nearest café, the ambiance might inspire you. It might get you in the mood to be creative or analytical. Go to Starbucks and try a hot, grande breve latte. Put 3 packs of brown sugar. It’s not in the menu, but the barista will be delighted to make the drink for you. Sip and enjoy!

I’m enjoying Productive Pinoy book and it is teaching me so much on how to improve things I normally do. A highly recommended book not just for entrepreneurs but for everyone.

Well done Mr. Yeng Remulla! We need more guys like you to write books and teach guys like me.