I recently subscribed to a cool thing I at the web which I learned from my good friend David Bonifacio – Formspring. It’s basically a site where you can ask questions from someone who is subscribed there and the inquirer can be anonymous. I didn’t really think there would be that many who would ask me questions but  I was surprised there were quite a few. Some questions were silly like what flavor ice cream I like or what my favorite dance is. My friend David had a plethora of questions on love and how to date him – I guess the questions you will get there is according to your perceived personality or image. Fortunately, most of my questions were about personal finance – those are the only questions I can give sensible answers to anyway.

There was one question posted there that I want to discuss in this blog, a question I have been asked many times – “what is the secret to being rich?” Ever since I went public (as a personal finance speaker / writer), answering that proverbial question seems to be the bane of my existence, so to speak. Well, I don’t really get annoyed answering that question but I am a bit disturbed that people actually think there is some sort of secret to being wealthy. My answer? There is none – never was, never will.

Let us not fool ourselves that there is a magic formula that will answer our question. Achieving financial freedom is a process and that process requires something so simple, yet so difficult to many – discipline. There is a reason why I recommend books like Total Money Make Over (Dave Ramsey) or Millionaire Next Door (Thomas J. Stanley & William D. Danko ) over more popular books like Rich Dad Poor Dad (Robert Kiyosaki) and Secrets of the Millionaire Mind (Harv T. Ecker).  Read those books and you’ll know why. I subscribe to Dave Ramsey’s podcasts because they are very practical, easy to apply and well, I like his ‘no-nonsense’ approach. I read Rich Dad Poor Dad and I must say there’s some value particularly on awakening our mind to the alternatives. I glanced through the book Millionaire Mind and didn’t even read much anymore because it’s full of mind tricks and lacking of real principles that will work. Unlike Total Money Make Over and Next Door Millionaire, they are direct to the point and you can actually apply it and see real measurable results.

There are no secrets; there are no short-cuts. To believe so is the markings of a fool and no one wants to be a fool right? If there’s one book that will really change you and make you not just achieve success but significance… it’s the Bible. One more thing, as you desire great wealth, pay more attention to the why rather than the how.  For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also. – Matthew 6:21

If you want to ask me a question on Formspring, visit http://www.formspring.me/RandellTiongson Sensible questions only ok? Questions on love, marriage, dating, hair, good looks and all that, ask my friend David Bonifacio.

Off to travelling again. This week, my work brings me to Cagayan de Oro and next week to Hong Kong.  When one travels, having long waiting periods are unavoidable. You need to be in the airport hours before, take a flight and lots of  ‘alone’ time in the hotel room.

I used to hate waiting and I get annoyed if I have to wait. However, I needed to get used to waiting with the kind of work I have so I decided to make my waiting time productive. When I say productive, I didn’t mean bringing my laptop with me and do a lot of those work — I meant being productive in the sense of recharging oneself.

How? I read and listen to podcasts a lot during those ‘waiting time’. I make sure I always travel with my Bible, a book and an iPod especially on those trips that I need to ride a plane. I fly often, like 2 to 3 times a month but I look forward to those trips so I can recharge myself. The best benefit is I get to read God’s word more than I do during my normal routine — in doing so, I can read the Bible cover to cover once a year (give or take a month or two). I also get to read my books and I have loads of them (most are unread). I also get to listen to podcasts, something I don’t get a chance to under my normal routine.

I just finished the book “Heavenly Man” and I probably will grab another book and shove it to my body bag. I just updated my iPod with my favorite podcasts – the Dave Ramsey Show. I also downloaded podcasts of someone Francis Kong recommended to me a long time ago, Ravi Zacharias — I never really got to it and totally forgot it, until now.

So next time you fret about waiting, make it a productive wait and take the chance to do some real learning. Happy waiting!

Many of us grew up with the notion that debt is part of our lives and will always be here to stay. I even here people say that “walang mayaman na walang utang” … obviously, that’s not really true. I know many rich people and most of them have no debts, personal or business.

Here’s what Dave Ramsey says…

“Debt is not a tool!”

Myth: Deb is a tool and should be use to create prosperity.

Truth: Debt adds considerable risk, most often doesn’t bring prosperity, and isn’t used by wealthy people nearly as much as we are led to believe.