“You Don’t Really Want Money” by Ron Davis

Today I found this great video by Ron Davis, whose personal development blog, Distinctions For Life, contains great advice on living better.

I thought I’d share this video entitled “You Don’t Really Want Money”, mostly because it points out several things I believe in:

•  That when people want money, they don’t really want the money per se, rather, they want what they think the money will bring.
• You don’t necessarily need more money to get what you want.

You can play the video below:

You Don’t Really Want Money from Ron Davis on Vimeo.

At the end of the video, Ron tells us to ask ourselves the following questions:

• Why do you want money?
• How will you know when you have enough money?
• What picture appears in your head when you think about having enough money?
• Can you have that moment or feeling without money?

Think about them.

Making the SuperFerry Stateroom More Affordable

Last week, my partner and I went to Cebu and Bohol on our vacation.  Since the ferry trips took 24 hours or more, we wanted to make sure that our accommodations were comfortable.

The Manila-bound tickets we initially bought were for cabin accommodations. This was okay, since the 2 of us were the only ones in the cabin, so we had our privacy.  Cabins can accommodate 4 to 8 people, depending on the vessel, and each cabin has its own TV and bathroom. But when we were going back to Manila from Cebu, our cabin had 5 other people in it, so we had to upgrade accommodations to have our privacy.

For the SuperFerry 1 vessel bound for Manila, getting the stateroom accommodations in the SuperFerry offices meant paying  P3,962.99 for two people (net fare including taxes and fees, and without meals).  However, by getting the upgrade on the ship itself,we were able to save P1,843.19!

How did this happen?  When we approached the vessel’s front desk, the person in charge told us that we only had to add P700 to our original fare (which was P1,419.80).  That’s only P350 each!  This would make our new fare P2,119.80, which is much cheaper than the P3,962.99 that we would’ve paid if we purchased stateroom tickets in the first place.

This was a real bargain because stateroom accommodations have a much bigger bathroom, a bed for two (rather than one small bed each), and a private viewing deck.  Also, your TV gets a wider range of channels (the TVs in other accommodations can only view GMA and ABS-CBN).  You also have a desk, chairs, and a nightstand.  You can also request hot and cold drinking water to be brought to your room.

The only downside to doing this is that if all the staterooms are full, then you can’t get an upgrade.  Also, you’ll have to reserve your upgrade as soon as you get on the vessel, or others who want to request an upgrade might get ahead.  But if you travel during off-season or the shoulder season, there’s a good  chance that there will be empty staterooms and fewer passengers to compete against.

I also don’t know if you can have the same amount of savings in other vessels, but I think that it’s likely.  After all, you’re already on the ship, and if there are vacant staterooms, at least SuperFerry can still earn from them because of your upgrade.

Have you experienced this yourself?  What do you do to make ferry accommodations more affordable? Please share any tips or comments with us

Note: Prices are accurate at the time of writing.

How rich are you?

I recently landed on The Global Rich List website.  It’s a fascinating site, because you input your annual income and the site tells you how rich you are compared to the rest of the world.

Apparently, I’m in the top13.17% richest in the world:

If the idea of wealth comparison and materialism makes you sick, don’t worry.  The Global Rich List is not about boasting about your wealth.  In fact, the point of the site is to show you how lucky you are compared to the rest of the world.  It makes you feel rich enough to realize that you can give to others.  If you want to try it, just click here to visit the Global Rich List site.

Now, you don’t have to give to the  charity that the Global Rich List supports (Care International UK).  You don’t even have to give your money, you can volunteer your time to a cause or organization your believe in.  A few months ago, I wrote a blog post on giving to charities and causes.  Go ahead and read that post in case you haven’t done so yet.  Frugal Pinoy also has a lengthy page that lists several local charities and NGOs.  You can refer to that list if you’re looking for local organizations to support.

Why am I talking about giving again?  Well, first of all, just because we’re experiencing an economic downturn, it doesn’t mean we should stop supporting the causes we believe in.  In fact, these causes need your support now more than ever.

Also, ‘di ba mag-pa-Pasko na? Don’t forget to add these kinds of donations to your Christmas budget.

What charities and causes do you support?  How has the financial crisis affected your ability to donate?