Money advice from an employee and an entrepreneur

The way you treat money reflects your upbringing. “Even if you know a thousand things about how to handle your money, if you don’t have the proper mindset, it’s really not going to happen,” says Clarissa Seriña‑de la Paz, an advertising professional and co‑author of the bestselling book, “I wish they taught money in high school.”

While many readers of that book were able to upgrade their lives, there were others who couldn’t absorb the advice because they still lacked one thing: confidence.

Last month, she and her co‑author Sharon Que, an entrepreneur, launched a second instalment which has a rather unorthodox title: “Money grows on trees,” authored by the two in the words of Katherine Tiuseco. Like their first, this book is two‑in‑one. On one side (with the purple cover) is Ms. dela Paz’s part, where she writes from the perspective of an employee, and on the reverse side (with the blue green cover) is Ms. Que’s part, where she speaks as an entrepreneur.

“A lot of Filipinos were not brought up believing that money actually grows on trees,” said Ms. Que. “With this book we want to challenge that mindset and we want to start a generation of Filipinos who will actually believe that if you have the abundance mindset, wealth will start to come in.”

Art Samantha Gonzales

In “Money grows on trees,” the two discuss insidious factors that affect one’s wealth, such as superstitions and the negative perceptions of Filipinos about money. Written from two perspectives, the book tackles financial matters as it would apply to different people, and in a tone that is.

“We usually have comfort zones about money and we want to break that,” Ms. Que said. She recounted how attending a goal‑setting seminar and playing a simple board game changed her mindset about earning and managing money.

Among the topics she discusses in the book is the “money bubble” (not to be confused with the financial bubble). According to her, this is an imaginary bubble formed in a person’s mind because of negative impressions regarding money. This bubble, she said, dictates us to spend only for what we think we’re worth.

The book thus urges people to expand their horizons, and teaches them the methods to do it.

Are they effective? Well, after making her bubble bigger, Ms. Que started to take trips to Europe without breaking the bank.

What are your costly, seemingly unattainable dreams? Tell us in the comments!