Last week I was in my usual spot at Burger King in SM City Dasmarinas editing the text of the last few chapters of my personal finance book. Behind me were three 20something guys each clutching a portable Sony Playstation. I stayed at Burger King for about 2 hours and the whole time the trio stayed in their seats excitedly hitting the buttons of their PSPs and giving out occasional “oohs” and “aahs;” apparently they were playing against each other.

I wasn’t concerned about the thousands they spent for their toys. What particularly bothered me was the time they spent playing – it was such a waste. They could have used it for something more productive. Perhaps they were just relaxing after a hard day’s work. But I surmise it was a regular recreation for these guys and they probably do it everyday. It’s not just PSPs, there are way too many gadgets and activities out there that keep the young ones from doing things that will help them get ahead in life and secure their financial future.

If this is how the youth spend their free time, I’m afraid that future Filipino families will continue to live mediocre lives, ill-equipped to handle the countless challenges in life. These fun-loving young adults are the same people who will likely live out their retirement years full of regrets about things that could’ve been and should’ve been.

Randell Tiongson recently wrote in this column a wonderful and revealing article about regrets we make in life. Like Randell, I’m also trying to undo the consequences of the mistakes I’ve done in the past. If you want to keep your list of regrets short try not to commit too many mistakes. To minimize committing slip-ups that can scar you for life you have to invest in your education.

Education is a lifelong process; it does not end when you receive your diploma. In fact, success in your career or business will greatly depend on how much valuable knowledge and skills you’ve picked up outside of the school system. Continuous learning should be a way of life for you; it should be as natural as breathing. Use your free time wisely; at every opportunity try to acquire new knowledge & ideas, enhance your skills & abilities and emulate the habits & attitude of successful people.

Do not limit your education to subjects related to your field of work or business. You have to expand your horizon; explore new things. Who knows, you might be more successful in a different field. And do not forget to learn about personal finance. We work primarily to earn money and provide for the needs of our families. It’s only natural that the focus of most people is on how to be more effective and efficient in what they do so they can earn more. However, you can still suffer from financial distress even though you are earning well if you lack sufficient knowledge about personal money management.

Practice active learning because that is the key to your advancement & financial success. By active, I mean you seek out new knowledge; don’t just wait for information to come to you. Take the initiative to educate yourself. I sometimes hear employees complain that they cannot do their jobs well because their company doesn’t provide skills-enhancement training. What a lame excuse. You can always enroll in the University of the Self-Taught where there’s only one admission requirement – a burning desire to learn.

Investing in your education doesn’t mean you have to spend thousands to learn; often you only need to invest your time. There’s plenty of valuable stuff out there that you can learn for free. And those that are not free don’t cost much. Here are some of the inexpensive things you can do to pursue non-stop education.

Read books. By committing to read at least one book each month, you would have read 60 books in 5 years. That’s about the same number of books in a 4-year college course. Imagine how much knowledge that is. Read more non-fiction books, especially the self-help guides. Fiction is for entertainment, so read it occasionally.

Read newspapers and magazines. Warren Buffet, the world’s richest man, is said to read 200 different publications every month. I read less than 50 which already include daily newspapers and 2 cheap comic books. No wonder Warren’s net worth is light years away from mine. Ease up on the men’s magazines and glossy publications that will just encourage you to spend.

Watch TV and listen to radio programs. There are weekly TV and radio programs that talk about business and money matters. Tune in to these programs and learn; it doesn’t cost anything.

Scour the internet. The web is a rich source of information on just about anything. All the good stuff can be found in the Internet, you just have to learn how to find them. Visit websites, read blogs, join e-groups & forums and watch presentations & videos on any subject of interest.

Attend trade fairs & expos. For a small entrance fee, usually P20 to P50, you can explore innovative ideas and business opportunities at trade fairs & expos (sometimes you get to sample plenty of food). You can also attend free public seminars that are normally held during these events.

Now, make sure you put to good use the skills and knowledge you acquire otherwise your pursuit for non-stop learning would just be a waste of time and you’re no better than the trio with PSPs.

Posted: August 25, 2008
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