How to maximize your investment during lockdown?

 

The lockdown has eroded the business sector in 185 countries worldwide and it is still growing.  This situation has caused the investment platforms to massively drop down and create havoc in the economy.  Many of investors have shifted their mindset into pulling their investments before the pandemic started how about those who has kept their investment in the platform how do we maximize your investments during the course of lockdown?  

While the world is shutting down there are wide opportunities for us to maximize what we’ve got.  If you have invested in the Stock market & mutual funds from the previous year, you are likely to position yourself on the platform already.  Keep it.  When we think of investments, we think the long-term growth.  The longer we position ourselves in any type of funds the higher it will get.  We just have to be patient.

 

Point #1: Be Emotionally Healthy

 The most important factor when investing is your emotional condition.  Remember when you previously took your Investor risk appetite test? When you scored around 12-15, you probably on the side of the index fund type of investor.   This score should not change even if the tough gets going.  The only question to ask here is if you got the right fund.  Now, because the emotional condition is very important in investing, maybe this is the right time to assess yourself.  “Am I really as risk type of investor?”  Then if not, maybe today is the right time to go back and take the test again. 

 

Taking the test is one way or another to recalibrate yourself from the previous year's market condition.  Do you remember your investment type during the 2008-2009 recession?  That period was depleting on the bank's side.  Today we are being affected by lockdown measures which cause the business to come to a halt.  This resulted in a drastic decline in the “Spending” of the consumers. 

  

Point #2: Diversify your investments

After you revisited your risk appetite it's time to review the fundamental sections of your stocks or funds you have.  If you are using a trading investment platform such as COL Financial, BPI Trade, Phil Equity and etc, you may want to check the following stocks. 

 AP securities file as of March 2021

APL	Apollo Global Capital Inc.

APL exhibits a breakout on a symmetrical triangle.

The potential upside if pattern manifests could reach up to resistance of P0.3020.

High volume but still trading at oversold level.

Our Partner Broker’s Recommendation:

Trading buy with Target Price of P0.3020.

Stop loss level: If price falls below breakout point of P0.2150 (EMA200).

If you notice on the above companies, they are the fore player on what is happening today.  The necessities, such as Electricity & Food are still the major source on our best stock offense.  So, Meralco which is the electricity provider in Metro Manila is seen to be growing steadily in the market.    The Puregold and Universal Robina are positioned in the consumer staples.  They provide the basic needs of the community.  The “Work from Home” scheme had been undoubtedly helpful to continue with the IT business and other BPO & IPO industries.  As such, in the Telco and Utilities, we can see the Globe and Manila water to be essentials in the household.

 

 Point #3: Home Based Jobs – Work from Home 

 The lockdown has pushed the work from home as the business continuity plan of most of the corporate jobs in Metro Manila.   They have modified and remodel the strategies as government-mandated.  For example, the PEZA devised a flexible working agreement among the members which enables the employees to bring their laptops and working devices to their respective homes.  The issued Memorandum Circular No. 2020-011 is taking necessary measures to guarantee the safety of its employees in all its jurisdiction against COVID-19, which already has reported local cases in the Philippines,” said PEZA Director-General Charito B. Plaza. 

Also, because of the WFH setup, some of the metro workers are shifting to provincial area vicinity to lower down the cost of rentals.  Some of the theories say that the impact of this plandemic will still persist for the next 5 years in effect to the business.  So if you are still working in the metro areas, its time to shift to working to your provinces to lower down the cost of your expenses. 

 

Point #4: Invest in yourself

 According to Benjamin Franklin, “Tell me and I forget. Teach me and I remember. Involve me and I learn.”  The point is, we should never stop learning, even in this time of uncertainty.  We should always look at the brighter side of what will happen after that.  So the best thing to do is to prepare before the lockdown is over.  Moreover, before the battle comes you have to refuel your guns.  And this gun is us.  We have to keep on learning and advancing ourselves.  Advancing in such a way that we have the right mindset in life.

 Also, learning is the best way to keep us busy and so not to be affected by the discouraging news outside.  According to American Psychological Association, the “coronavirus is a epidemiological and phycological crisis”.  Which means, anxiety, panic attacks, depression and suicide are the highest conditions that would affect individuals.  So it is very important to seek support from family, friends and support contact.   Also, learning is the best way to exercise our mind to think. 

 

Here are some of the online learning you can access for free. 

 The eds.org. 

This online course provide you with almost 2500++ online courses.  Here are the free courses you can take. Click on this link.

 Future Learn

Click here for free learningcourses.

 Linked In learning

Click here for free linkedin learning tools.

 Udemy Learning

Click here for free udemy learning tools.

 As summary, having a stable emotional mindset on investment, diversified stocks funds, increasing your funds using online jobs, cultivating your mindset through learning will maximize your investments during lockdown.  My prediction is when these major components are addressed immediately there will be 80% chances that you will likely adapt to this changing world.  

  

Common Online Home-Based Jobs

 While several online home-based jobs abound on the web, the list below presents the most common:

 Encoder/Transcriptionist

Data entry jobs are probably the most common online homebased job. All that is needed is to enter data as instructed in a word processor or a spreadsheet. Others may require online research. A more technical type of data entry job is the medical or legal transcriptionist. This type requires a more technical background, i.e., familiarity with medical and legal terms is needed. One would have to listen to audio recordings and transcribe them according to the prescribed format.

 Online Teacher

Most common are online English teachers needed by non-native English speakers usually from Asian countries. A working computer, earphones with microphones, and stable internet connection are needed since the teacher will have to converse with the student online and teach him or her basic and conversational English.

 Internet Entrepreneur/Online Seller

Born entrepreneurs take advantage of this online home-based job by marketing and selling items online. While stores and malls offer a wide range of items to choose from, online market provides the same, which is more convenient and accessible.

 Customer Service Assistants

Just like Customer Service Representatives in the IT-BPM sector, Customer Service Assistants do the same job. The only difference is that they are working from home.

 Virtual Assistants

Virtual Assistant is a collective term for online/web-based workers providing support to various  companies. There is a general virtual assistant who is required to provide administrative assistance such as data entry, social media management, research, among others. Other types of virtual assistants are Article/Content Writer, SEO Specialist, and Web Developer/Programmer.

 Web Developer/Programmer

A Web Developer designs, codes and modifies websites, from layout to function to make it visually-appealing in design and user-friendly in navigation.

 Online Writer/Editor

For writers, online writing and editing is a good fit. Instead of doing writing as a hobby, one can do blogs and write online articles at a price. There are also others who look for online editors to edit and proof papers and reports.

 

Online Trading or Stock Market

Investing in the stock market is the newest and probably the most rewarding online job. While others earn from it by acting as financial advisor to various clients, others also do it for himself or herself. The earnings in this kind of venture depend on the performance of the stock market.

 Online Gaming

Who would think that playing online games could be a source of income? From playing social media games, online poker, among others, a gamer could earn some bucks. There is usually a challenge to beat for one to get paid.

About the author 

Jack Marbida is a husband to his wife Wene and a father of 2 little boys Isaac and Israel, he is a financial advisor, speaker, and writer who helps families be financially stable and grow their relationships. He works with families to help them reach their goals by teaching them about financial literacy and helping them develop a healthy relationship with money.

He has been featured in Sun Life Financials and others for his work as a financial coach. He is also the founder of Online Advisors Financial Education, which provides free educational content through blogs and videos.

Jack speaks at conferences across the Philippines on topics such as family finances, and personal and professional growth.  

You can contact Jack Marbida through his social media accounts or email him at papajackph@gmail.com.

Cheers!