If you’re a Filipino in corporate, financing a home, the appliances in said home, and a car… yes, you… I am talking to you! Mahirap ano? You’re trapped in the “Filipino dream” we were all taught was the sign of success.

​All the utang apps, pay later, online loan wallets, and endless deals aren’t helping. We’ve just modernized an old cycle. My mother, a public school teacher, had her own version of this back in her day: the infamous “sangla ATM” trap. Today, we just do it on our smartphones.

​1. The Myth of “Sayang ang Rent”
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Sino ba kasi ang nag-sabing sayang ang binabayad mo sa rent? Si Cynthia Villar? Bakit nga ba kasi ipipilit bumili sa subdivision sa dulo ng Cavite para lang masabing may bahay na?

​’Edi kinain ka rin ng gas, pamasahe, at oras para mag-pabalik-balik sa trabaho mo sa Manila. By the time you realize the toll it’s taking on your life, you’re forced to sell your supposed “dream” home ng pa-lugi.

​2. The Car Loan Illusion

​Let’s be real: Hindi mo afford ang sasakyan if you can’t buy it in cash. The down payment is only the start of the never-ending expense that a car brings. Wala ka rin namang papark-ingan. Period. Isa pa, napaka-trapik sa Pinas! The public transport, angkas and taxis are at your disposal, and nothing’s wrong with a motorcycle if you have a fat bank account—although nobody needs to know, and nobody cares.

​3. Crab Mentality in the Corporate World

Tayo-tayo lang ang naghihilahan pababa without us knowing with our own inherited toxic ways. Don’t you want to get out of that never-ending cycle? Yabangan ng perang wala ka?

For my dear lady readers, wag kayong mag-papauto diyan sa asawa niyong gusto lang mag-yabang sa kapitbahay. At sa’yo naman na panay ang pasikat sa katrabaho mong mas baon pa sa utang sa’yo—tama ka na. If you stop now, it’ll all end. You’ll eventually be able to pay it off and get your peace of mind back. (At kokotongan kita kung uulit ka pa!)

Ultimately, the greatest asset isn’t a title, a car, or a deed to a house sa malayong-malayo. It’s being able to sleep at night and having a sound mind because you don’t stress about a due date every single month. If you are experiencing all this and want out, follow me on my journey. Dreams are for sleeping, but to be financially free, you need to be awake and see the cage you’ve built around yourself.