10 - money matters

Ghi chú ý chính:

• Money plays a very important role, even very, very important

  • Without money, life will be difficult

    • because basic living needs money

  • in case of unwanted situations:

    • it is very important, for example, our relatives are sick and need money for the hospital ...

• Everybody has problems with money management.

  • Vietnamese education does not teach children about money management since they are in high school <> compared with children in foreign countries

    • ⇒ until graduation from the university (24 years old)

  • Save money -

    • open a savings account in the bank for old people <> Businessman always borrows money to invest in something

    • Save money - prepare for some unwanted situations

  • Take care of how many digits in the bank account ...

The questions?

• much money ⇒ happier ?

• should invest in education 30% or

• invest in high-tech devices (brand-new technological products)

⇒ important but not at all.

My goal about money:

• To save money for unwanted situations

• Invest in education for myself and my family

• 1 to 5% for charity

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To be honest, money has played different roles at different stages of my life.

⇒ play a important role

• When I first graduated, earning a high salary was my top priority because I needed to support my young family and pay off a housing loan in Long Thanh. I worked long hours as a programmer and even took freelance projects at night.

=> Back then I used to think that the more digits I saw in my bank account, the safer my future would be.

• When geting older: my attitude has changed.

  • After nearly twenty years in IT and managing two companies, I’ve saved enough for basic security, so I’m no longer chasing big pay-cheques.

  • Instead, I prefer to invest in things that bring long-term value rather than quick profit.

    • For example, I’m saving for my son’s studies in Finland and also for my own Master’s degree.

    • I see those expenses as investments in knowledge, not costs.

three simple things must be care:

• living costs,

• education,

• and charity.

⇒ The charity part is small but it reminds me that money should also help other people, not just my family.

⇒ To avoid overspending, I use a spreadsheet and review it every Sunday;

In the future I hope to live more simply—

• maybe teaching part-time,

• eating vegetarian food,

⇒ For that lifestyle, for me, money matters" money is important but not at all.