Financial guru Francis J. Kong: ‘Invest on things that add value to your success goals’

CEBU, Philippines – For motivational speaker and financial guru Francis J. Kong, it’s important to grow in one’s career and that money will just follow.

Kong advised people to spend their time and energy on things that add value to their success goals.

“If you spend your time in activities that suck the money out of you without adding value to your success goals, you’re on the wrong way,” Kong said in his recent talk on wealth management to call center workers in Cebu City, as part of the financial education advocacy of The Philippine STAR.

“The way you spend your money and the way you spend your time and energy will give you a total picture of your life,” Kong said.

According to Kong, a person can be the most powerful income-generating machine by working on himself or herself and developing his or her skills.

Kong, who has extensive work experience in manufacturing and retail, shared that when he was still starting in his career, he was spending much of his income in buying books to increase his knowledge on public relations, marketing, advertising and public speaking. These were the areas where he really wanted to excel.

Kong pointed out that people must build and offer their skills because as they add value to what they can do, they get more money in exchange. People must also be intentional with their personality development.

In his talk, Kong offered some financial advice and he urged people to make them their habits, saying: “Habits are more powerful than knowledge.”

1. Money does not come easy, it cannot buy you happiness. People must work hard to earn money. Kong believes the grass is always greener where people water it. People must also continue to develop by challenging themselves, learning something and increasing their competence.

2. Tracking the expenses. The “income - savings = expenses” formula should always be a guiding principle. Most people, Kong said, start deducting their expenses from their income first, and they save what is left, which is the wrong way. Savings should be set aside first from the income and spend what is left. “The higher your income, the higher your expenses will try to catch up with your income,” he said.

3. Live within your means but don’t stay there. Kong urged people to increase their means by increasing their value, skills and abilities. He understands that needs and wants consistently change over time so people should know how to raise their income by growing themselves, their competence and knowledge. “Unless you increase your means, how can you aspire?” he said.

5. Not all debt is bad debt. A good debt is when a person buys something that increases in value while a bad debt is something that decreases in value over time. Kong advised to always for the former.

Moving forward, Kong stressed that financial discipline is key for people to achieve financial freedom. “You need to discipline yourself to realize that money doesn’t come easy, and the importance of saving money and tracking your expenses,” he said.

“When you master the basics because of your discipline, when a crisis situation happens it frees you from bothering yourself with the basics pa lang and gives you enough space to be creative in solving the problem,” Kong said. (FREEMAN)