By Joaquin Yulo

What do you usually do when you receive money?

A major part of Filipino culture is the giving of envelopes during holidays and celebrations, typically during birthdays, Christmas, and sometimes as a reward for achievements. However, when given a resource like money, the question always lands on “What to do with it?” Many like to save it for the future, while others prefer to make the most of it and spend it on something they’ve been wanting for a long time. However, in the recent Great Minds Think Alike seminar hosted by the Ateneo Investment Group, a third, riskier, but-more-possibly-rewarding option was brought up: Investing.

The event, held on April 2, took place in the second floor of the Formation and Learning Center during the org session schedule for the day—prominently featuring guest speaker Elijah “Eli” Soriano from the Ateneo Management Economics Organization, who spoke about financial decision-making, the basics of investments & finance, and asset allocation.

Setting the Stage

The Great Minds Think Alike Seminar is one of the trademark activities done by the Ateneo Investment Group (AIG). Aimed at inviting experienced guest speakers to share their knowledge to members of the organization, its main goal is education through senior mentorship. Mico Vallestero, the organization’s secretary, stated in an interview that the seminar became a bridge for students who wanted to know more about investing and the like. 

“One of the main goals of this project was to give the students an idea of what people with real-life investing experiences have to offer compared to a student’s knowledge,” Mico stated. 

Typically, the group invites speakers from outside the walls of the ASHS to speak during these seminars. When asked about the decision, Althea Lardizabal, the organization’s president, remarked, “The event demonstrates the organization’s dedication to expanding outside of its immediate surroundings in search of insightful viewpoints. By having outside speakers, the organization shows that it is receptive to different viewpoints and that it is committed to giving its members a thorough understanding of a range of topics, including financial literacy.”

Additionally, the day’s guest speaker, Eli, noted that from a scale of one to ten, he believes that the seminar helped the members of the organization at the level of nine. “It’s really good to be able to provide people an opportunity to be able to listen to someone more experienced because they can give more insightful information as to how people can pull off successful investments and how to manage their finances. I think the one thing that can be improved on is the fact that you have to remember that finance or investing is a practical field,” he noted.

Choosing Wisely

Another concept tackled by the discussions in the seminar was making financial decisions in general. As voiced by the speaker: “It’s very important. The thing about financial decisions is that no matter what path you’ve taken, even if you’re not into the financial sector, you’re gonna have to deal with that on a regular basis.”

In general, financial decisions occur when managers make decisions with regard to the finances of a company—whether in terms of acquiring assets like cash, properties, or managing expenditures, essentially allocating budgets for the year. In order to make financial decisions, another keyword, financial literacy, is needed. In a nutshell, financial literacy is the ability to discern and evaluate situations involving money and finance, eventually leading to positive financial decisions.

Interestingly enough, we already make financial decisions. Simply deciding whether or not to buy a certain side dish in the cafeteria is a smaller-scale example of a financial choice that we make—and will have to make—for the rest of our lives. Along with these decisions come the financial literacy needed in order to make wise choices. Interestingly enough, financial literacy is never bought, nor learned, in mere days or weeks. Rather, it takes long years to truly be financially literate. The Great Minds Think Alike seminar, however, provides a shortcut to this knowledge through its invitation of learned and experienced guest speakers. 

The organization’s president couldn’t have said it any better: “Establishing financial literacy early on provides a strong basis for people to manage their finances later in life. Financial literacy is essential for both personal and professional success. Great Minds Think Alike advances the development of critical life skills that enable people to make wise decisions and create positive connections with money by highlighting the significance of comprehending the fundamentals of financial management.”

Understanding Yourself

Once the concept of financial decision-making is tackled, the new frontier of financial success that comes into light is one financial decision that could potentially reap more than sow—investing. However, as discussed by Eli in the seminar, investing and learning from it is a three-step process consisting of setting financial goals, understanding your financial state, and planning to achieve your financial goals based on your situation. 

“First, remember that in order to understand personal finance, you first have to know how to understand yourself because if you understand yourself, you’ll be able to understand your spending habits. Second, knowing how to do asset allocation properly, because a lot of people tend to be risk averse and not take risks, so it’s important to know how to objectively allocate assets to grow wealth properly,” he stated.

Making Mistakes

The final stop, and, ironically, one of the most important pieces of advice given during the seminar was to make mistakes. Eli explained, “Remember this: If you invest 100 thousand pesos now, and consider that, 10% loss is only 10 thousand. After you learn how to lose that, you’ll be able to make successful trades because you can regulate emotions.” Essentially, this proves that in the world of finance, experience is the best teacher. 

The final point of the seminar was a reminder to not be a slave to money and to instead find ways to make the most of the resource of money to purchase things that benefit us. After all, in a world with an ever-growing economy, money is one of the most fundamental resources to have.

“By saving money and investing in different types of financial instruments, one can live a life where money works for you,” noted Vallestero.

Lardizabal adds, “Let your money grow without sacrificing happiness.” 

It’s incredibly grounding that, despite being an organization that emphasizes growing in both finances and financial knowledge, the AIG remains rooted in the maxim that money should not come at the expense of happiness. Although the seminar contained a lot of information about finance and earning money, the true trademark of Great Minds that Think Alike is that they control the money, and not the other way around.