It's a cool 26 degrees Celsius this morning. I'm glad to be up early and enjoy the gentle breeze and cool air, listening to birds chirping versus the quiet neighborhood is a privilege not many people get to enjoy. Living in a suburban environment has it's advantages.

Front Row Seat

Anyways, I have always been drawn to causes since I was a young man via involvement in sports, campus politics, academic orgs and community outreach programs. Going back to my "roots" as a young adult who just got out of university, I joined a microfinance NGO where I saw how people who come from extreme poverty were able to break out of the cycle. For those not familiar, a microfinance NGO's main purpose is to help improve people's economic lot in life.

The main target population in the community are the women who stay at home, but would like to start a micro-business or save a small amount on a regular basis from the money that they get from their husbands. The women attend trainings and seminars provided by the NGO on different topics: skills training, managing money, business planning, the basics of accounting, bread making, and other life skills intended to supplement their knowledge and understanding of business and life in general.

It was an eye opener for me. To see first hand the life and challenges they had to go through to get out of poverty is a once in a lifetime opportunity, which came at the right time. The more I observed, interviewed, and evaluated their loans and savings portfolio, the more I learned about myself and my attitude towards wealth and wealth building. It's very interesting dynamic; to see how people's values changed as their situation in life changed. As for me, it was a lesson in transformation.

Looking back, it was one of the best things that could have happened to me as a young adult. I got a front row seat in witnessing "successful" people come out from the most difficult situations in life. It taught me that the cards we were dealt with in life cannot hold back determination, anticipation, and flexibility in adapting to an ever changing world.

To these people, it's their way of living; their means to survive, put food on the plate, and a roof above their head. But to me, it's seeing first hand the stories that motivational speakers talk about on how to succeed, on how to create your own reality, and pushing forward when all else have failed. It's like being part of a documentary on financial education.

Breaking Free

Speaking of which, I re-watched the 2022 documentary "Get Smart With Money". It's another film that might help you in achieving your financial goals, if you are open to change your mindset about money and how personal finance can be "hacked". It has a 5.7 rating on IMDb and a 75% Audience score on Rotten Tomatoes, which is okay.

So, the documentary features people in different situations having money problems, the "experts" come in, talk with them about their situation, and help them get out of the rut. Needless to say, it's a must-watch if you are in a rut. For sure, the situations vary from person to person, but I think it's a good thing to have someone else look at your situation because we might not be seeing the whole picture. Getting a different perspective or just bouncing ideas off from someone knowledgeable really helps us get a grasp of the situation and how to turn things around.

Unlike the target beneficiaries we had back when I was in microfinance, the people in the documentary are not dirt-poor. There's an athlete, a waitress/bartender, a high-income couple, and a shopaholic, all with the capacity to earn. It's just that they don't know how to navigate the waters of personal finance. I think the experts did well. They showed a different perspective on how to handle their finances and had success coaching the "clients". The advise they gave may seem ordinary or common sense, but it isn't. There's truth to the phrase "common sense is not so common". We all have ideas on spending the money we earned, some well thought of, some are not. Sometimes, our money just goes through our hands like trying to grab air. We don't think much about swiping a credit card in the store, we just do it - automatically.

So, the point that I'm trying to make is that we seldom see clearly how we act in the world because we just do things on a moment-to-moment basis. It's good to have someone check out these actions, especially if there seems to be a problem. After all, everyone has a blind spot. And blind spots can cause accidents if we aren't careful. It's true in the road when we are driving and it's the same in personal finance when we handle our money.

Conclusion

I hope that you enjoyed today's blog. The things I've said here are mostly for myself. Thinking about how to improve my life and my financial situation. It's really all about mindset and perspective. How I view the world and where I fit in in that world. There's only so much that we can do in the face of difficulties and looking at how others succeeded in overcoming huge hurdles may also help us, even if it's just giving us hope via success stories. And, that's it for today.

'till next time.

Love and peace,
@juanvegetarian

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