Why do you work?

Aside from everyday living and the deeper need for getting busy and accomplishing something, I have just come to add the need for investment seriously. It's not exactly a new thing for me because I was able to set aside some amount almost ten years ago. It wasn't just that active and it has stayed there for a while.

Right now, with my second wind of work opportunities, I am more aware in the need to seriously work to invest for the later years. I have to be able to set aside the amount every month and put in a growing investment vehicle that will give me an extra income in the future. It's not just put aside this amount, let it sleep and hope that I don't have to withdraw it that soon. It's more different now, I can try to visualize how I want live in the next few years. It doesn't hang on someone else's plans coz I really don't think he has any. I'll be steering my own boat, let them ride if they want to coz so far, I have been the push for the life decisions that we had done. :)

I've just opened my online investment account recently and finally funded it today. Come April and I would be able to buy some stocks if I want to. Now, I've not been really idle in investing all these years coz whenever my bank account surpasses 7 digits (it's pretty small in Korean won actually, but still) I feel like I am "rich enough to invest." Now, that is an exaggeration. :) I just have this uneasy feeling like, what will I do with this amount? It isn't that big really but I am just thinking if it stays in my current account, it would all most likely be used in shopping. That can be an addictive vice, I know.

So where have those extra won had gone? What investment vehicle I've tried?
a. mutual fund - sleeping coz it's hard to withdraw
b. one-time time deposit - easiest to vanish, now gone
c. lot - luckily, it's still a "lot" and my parents are kept busy with it
d. house improvement - cost us a lot, we used it anyway, but I couldn't say it was a good one
e. education - not exactly solid on paper yet except for a license, but it did help me
f. installment time-deposit - Completed one cycle so far to try it out, but I don't really know what to do with it after coz it wasn't enough for a decent one-time deposit plus the rates are not that good anyway. I had to find other place to move it.

Anyway, I've used some of it on education (again) and some on the online investment I've just started. (450 and 700 respectively) I've also signed up for a couple of new installment TD account.

I'm also looking into updating my home-country government savings, insurance system, etc. My parents have been the one doing the payments but I found that I can possibly do once or twice a year from here. So I'll be looking into ways to do that next. I'm pretty positive that slowly but surely, I will be able to increase my monthly income soon. I should be more ready for that though. I don't want to be caught up working my butt out and not knowing where to let my earning grow without me having to work that much later on. I know that I can find a more stable source if I want to and when I am ready. I can also visualize myself being able to afford to go back home more frequently without causing much dent on our finances. There will be a way and I might be able to profit on the sides even.

It's all in the horizon. I just hope that my family will be in good health for more years to come to be able to realize these.  

So for the immediate check list of investments:
a. study the online investment
b. check out the PAG-IBIG payment system, modified and increased one
c. restart the Ph banking things again with an authorization letter for my Mom maybe

That's it for now. I am not feeling suddenly. I do need a health check up one of these days.