Your Wealthy Mind Author : Ray L.

R.A. 9049 Medal of Valor Benefits

November 9, 2019 by Ray L. 3 Comments

Tagalog Version (Click Here)

Before we talk about the Medal of Valor benefits under R.A. 9049, let me share with you a little story that happened last April of 1996…

One fateful night near Barangay Sinepetan, a huge group of over 400 heavily armed Moro Islamic Liberation Front rebels marched towards the town of Carmen in North Cotabato. Due to the overwhelming number of hostile forces, some AFP officers in the area have been told to stand down.

One Scout Ranger officer, however, decided to ignore that order to save the town of Carmen. That night, in what’s widely considered one of the most dangerous missions ever done by an elite unit in the AFP, Capt. Robert Edward Lucero took an elite team of 14 Scout Rangers and they went on to attack the rebels directly.

For 9 hours, the small team held the line to protect the town of Carmen without receiving any backup or support. As they ran out of bullets and grenades, Capt. Lucero noticed the enemy 50 Cal. machine gun and the mortars that caused the most casualties to his team. In an all-or-nothing gamble, he stealthily crawled through the battlefield alone using the cover of darkness to his advantage. Through his act of courage, he was able to kill the rebel machine gunner, and take control of the machine gun from within enemy lines. By killing over 29 enemy rebels and their commander named Mangyan, he was able to turn the tide of battle, thus forcing most of the rebels to flee.

While firing at the remaining rebels, tending to his wounded comrades and maneuvering them to safer positions, Capt. Lucero, unfortunately, was shot in the head by an enemy sniper and was killed in battle.

He paid the ultimate sacrifice in service of the country.

That… was the story of my father, Capt. Robert Edward M. Lucero. “The Hero of Carmen, Cotabato”, he is one of the rare few who have been awarded the Medal of Valor, the highest combat award in the Philippine military.

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Limang Bagay na Kailangan Tandaan ng mga Leader

October 25, 2019 by Ray L. 1 Comment

English Version (Click Here)

Dahil ako ay self-employed, hindi na ako madalas nagkakaroon ng mga pagkakataong maging leader ng mga bagong grupo. Dahil doon, natuwa ako noong napili akong maging leader ng training climb ng isang hiking o mountaineering organization. Sa kasamaang palad, napakarami kong nagawang mali at para sa akin napakalaking kabiguan ang ginawa ko sa akyat naming iyon. Nagpapasalamat na lang ako na marami rin naman akong natutunan mula sa karanasang iyon.

Gayunpaman, kuwento iyon para sa ibang article. Sa ngayon, basahin mo itong ilang mga bagay na kailangan tandaan ng mga leader.

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Five Things Leaders Need to Remember

October 25, 2019 by Ray L. 1 Comment

Tagalog Version (Click Here)

Being self-employed, there’s not a lot of opportunities for me to lead groups, so it was a nice surprise when I was chosen to lead a certain hiking organization’s training climb. I made a lot of terrible mistakes and I consider my work on that climb a near complete failure. I’m just thankful the experience taught me a lot of lessons.

Still, that’s a story for another time. For now, here are a few things leaders need to remember.

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Ano ang “Too Good to be True” (at Paano Iwasan ang mga Scam o Modus)

October 3, 2019 by Ray L. 2 Comments

English Version (Click Here)

Ilang taon na ang nakararaan, may natuklasang real estate investment ang aking ina. May isang luxury resort na tumatanggap ng mga investors, at sa halagang P200,000, makakabili ka ng isang kwarto sa resort na pwede mong paupahan at pagkakitaan. Sa palagay ko, maayos naman ang investment na iyon. Medyo mapanganib kasi hindi namin alam kung magiging popular ba ang resort na iyon at baka rin hindi ganoon kaganda ang lokasyon.

May pagdududa din ako lalo na noong hindi nila agad ibinigay ang mga terms at conditions ng kontrata at nagbigay lang sila ng brochure, pero may pera naman ang pamilya namin para doon. Matapos ibinigay ng magulang ko ang unang deposit, kinulit muna niya ang kumpanya tungkol sa mga terms bago ito sinabi ng representative nila. Makakakuha nga daw kami ng room na pwede naming gamitin at paupahan… sa isang linggo kada dalawang taon. Kailangan rin naming magbayad ng maintenance fees buwan buwan.

Hindi iyon investment. Isa lang pala iyong modus o scam! Sobrang iba iyon sa unang sinabi na magkakaroon kami ng room sa resort na pwede naming paupahan. Lantarang false advertising o pagsisinungaling ang ginawa nila. Hindi man mabawi ng aking ina ang P18,000 na deposit, buti na lang din nakalabas kami sa scam bago lumala pa ang sitwasyon.

Isa lamang iyong halimbawa ng mga posibleng modus, pero ano nga ba ang ibig sabihin ng “too good to be true”? Pag-usapan natin susunod ang mga pinakapopular na modus sa bansa.

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“Too Good to be True” (and How to Spot Scams)

October 3, 2019 by Ray L. 5 Comments

Tagalog Version (Click Here)

Some time ago my mother discovered a real estate investment opportunity. A luxury resort was accepting investors, so for the price of around P200,000, you can own a room at the resort and get a share of the profit whenever you rent it out. In my opinion, it sounded like a decent deal. It was somewhat risky as we don’t know how much business that new resort will get and the location might not be that good.

I had my doubts especially when they didn’t immediately send us the terms and conditions of the contract and they only gave us a brochure, but our family did have money for it. After my mother sent the first deposit and she started asking about the full terms, the representative finally told her the details. We’ll get to use or rent out a room… for one week every two years. We’ll also need to pay some maintenance fees every month.

That’s no investment. That was a scam! It was WAY different from the “own a resort room and rent it out” deal that the first promoter said. It was blatant false advertising. Although my mother couldn’t withdraw the initial P18,000 deposit, we were glad to have exited that scam before things got worse.

Well, that was just one example of a scam. What does it mean when something seems “too good to be true”? Let’s talk about the most popular kinds of scams here in the Philippines next.

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