It's Time!

by Kendrick Chua

Last week, I was having a conversation with an acquaintance when she broached the topic of investing. Having heard from another friend that I am into it, she asked how I was doing.  I answered that my portfolio is doing quite well and couldn’t be happier with it. Impressed, she said that she’d like to start investing but only when she has a bigger capital. Being a financial advisor and faced with an ‘excuse’ like this, I had the urge to lecture about the fallacy that had since prevented people like her from investing. I resisted. There is a proper time for that. But I can’t help but be disappointed that despite all efforts to kill the myth, it is still very much alive today.

That was why when I heard about the unique story of Editha Comoda from my associate, Carmela Catapang, I immediately requested for an interview because I couldn’t pass up writing such a story and let readers be encouraged by her.

Comoda’s journey to financial independence started when she was in elementary. Her school, in partnership with a bank, introduced to them savings in a passbook. That way, students can start saving from their allowances. Hence, all the allowances she received were immediately deposited into the savings account she opened for herself.

When she reached college, she supported herself by working as a student assistant and just like when she was in high school, most of the allowances she received still went to the bank. She revealed that since she did not come from a well-to-do-family so she inculcated in her mind the idea of saving consistently.

When she started working, she still diligently set aside an amount from her monthly income first and lived on the rest. Again, she still continued saving in the bank and was elated every time she checks her balance and see her savings grow bigger. She thought that putting money in the bank “was the only way to get rich”.

It was only when she met her boss and investment advisor that she realized that her money can and deserves to earn much more than what the banks have to offer. Her boss then explained to her the benefits of investing in mutual funds. But just like most of the people, she initially had her reservations and thought investing in such financial instrument is “only for the rich”. But as her boss continued to educate her, explaining financial jargons to more understandable manner, she began to appreciate the idea. Not long after, she decided to start putting her money in mutual funds.

It was in 2005 when she met Catapang, whom she calls her ‘financial angel’, did she realize that goal. Since then, there was no stopping her. Every month for the past five years, Comoda consistently invested. If she did miss a month, she’d double the amount the following month.

Never did I hear such dedication and commitment from an investor. Because of the habit, she was able to benefit from the stock market rally several years back. Although she admitted the financial crisis two years ago also scared her, she remembered the advice of her boss: buy things when they are on sale.

She did. She took advantage of the depressed prices then and invested aggressively. As a result, her investment had risen several folds as of this writing!

While most corporate employees hope of getting out of the environment and start their own business and be their own bosses, Comoda says putting up a business is not for her and being an employee is in her heart. As a matter of fact, because of her bonuses, she was also able to invest in the stock market.

Who says there are no financial opportunities in being a corporate employee? It looks like another myth has just been busted.

What made it also convenient for Comoda was Catapang’s commitment. She did justice to her role as a financial advisor. She gives her unbiased recommendation in case her opinion is sought. Once, when Comoda contemplated on buying an education plan, Catapang gave a thorough analysis and detailed computation on how much she stands to earn from it. In turns out, it wasn’t as suitable as she initially thought. The sale did not push through. If only there would be more committed advisors, more people would be encouraged to start investing.

Truth be told, financial institutions have also made investing very accessible today. Some offer a minimum investment of only P5,000 with subsequent investments of P1,000. Financial plans have been designed to be easy on the budget for plan holders. If you doubt your discipline on paying the premiums regularly, then enroll in an auto-debit facility. The money in your bank account will automatically be deducted to pay for them once the due date arrives. Monitoring of the funds has also become very convenient. Online portfolios have been set-up so investors and clients can access them anytime and anywhere.

Comoda’s story proves that almost anyone can start investing. All it takes is a trusted advisor and a strong commitment and you are on your road to achieving financial success. The next time you thought of investing, stop thinking and just start doing. When that happens, then there will be more inspiring stories to write about.