Happiness Isn't Only for Millionaires by Bro. Bo Sanchez

As you know, I’m the crazy guy who wants everyone to be multimillionaires.  I don’t only “want” it to happen, I actually created a step-by-step program for everyone to become multimillionaires.  It’s called the TrulyRichClub.  The Goal of the Club: To Make Good People Rich.   And I’m happy to report that thousands of ordinary people are already on their way to becoming multimillionaires.

         BUT with the same breath, I also teach people how to be happy apart from material wealth.  Or they’ll NEVER be happy, no matter how rich they become…

Epicurusonce said, Whoever does not regard what he has as ample wealth, is unhappy, though he be the master of the world.

People think that happiness is expensive.  If you look at the list below, they seem to be right!

Buffet lunch at Shangrila Hotel                                     P1,800

Wearing a pair of Ferragamo shoes                                P12,000

Driving, or being driven, in a brand-new Lexus                P3.5 M

Lying beside a pool in cool Polo shorts                           P4,000

Checking the time in a Rolex                                         P400,000

Malling in a Lacoste shirt                                     P4,000

Seeing the glint of a one karat diamond ring (average)      P500,000

Walking in a party in an elegant Armani suit           P100,000

Cuddling up in a Marks and Spencers pajamas                P4,500

Daubing the scent of Estee Lauder perfume, small bottle   P3,000

Travelling in ‘business class’ instead of ‘tourist’ (U.S)     $3,000

There are people I know who don’t think that happiness is expensive.  But what they do is awesomely enriching.  For them, happiness means:

                  Being quiet in prayer for 10 minutes each morning                   P0.0

           Giving a glass of water to the postmen and garbage collector P0.0

           Laughing with friends                                                                    P0.0

           Calling up my friend and asking how he is doing                       P0.0

           Reading a good book.  (Borrow one!)                                          P0.0

           Visiting an Elderly Home and listening to the stories of a Lola P0.0

           Taking a quiet walk with a loved one and holding hands          P0.0

           Choosing to sleep-in until 10:00 AM one Saturday morning     P0.0

           Cooking popcorn and holding a songfest with the kids             P100.00

           Giving roses to a friend (from market) with an original poem     P100.00

           Wrestling with an 8 year old son, and letting him win                 P0.0

  Making love with your spouse                                                      P0.0

         Know that happiness isn’t only for millionaires.

Let me ask you:  What simple joys do you regularly take in your life similar to those mentioned above?

Make a list of other inexpensive pleasures you want to try.  Take your calendar and schedule some of these activities in the coming week.  If you don’t do this, there’s a big chance that you’d forget about these not-so-urgent but very important “celebrations of life”. 

You’re More Than Your Wealth

Jonathan Pond said, Living beneath your means is the only route to take to enjoy a secure and comfortable standard of living throughout your working and retirement years.  Living beneath your means isn’t a suggestion.  It’s an imperative.

I’m now earning a lot through my many businesses; Yet I still own very few things today.  Reason: 90% of the time, I only buy what I need, not what I want.  And 10% of the time, I give myself a few luxuries and buy what I want.  This financial habit makes me have much more to invest in my Stock Market investments and much more to invest in the Kingdom—through tithes and alms.

Why do I have this financial attitude?  Because I am more than the brand of my watch, the logo of my shoes, or the name of my car.  I believe that if in my soul, I deeply respect and value myself, people around me will sense that, and they too will value and respect me—whether I’m wearing an armani or not.

My friend told me that he bought a pair of jeans.  Cost?  P12,000 each.

I nearly fell to the floor.

Because last week, I just bought a really nice one for P800. 

I admit it may not look as cool as my friend’s P12,000 pair.  But I don’t think people will love me less than that guy.  (Disclosure: My most expensive pair is P3000.  So I’m no cheapskate either.  I enjoy and appreciate good, durable things as blessings from God.)

         Two years ago, my friend bought a brand new luxury car worth P7 Million.  Practically the same time I bought my own second-hand luxury car too.  I wanted bigger legroom at the backseat and smoother ride—so I could continue writing my articles on my laptop—while my driver circumnavigates Manila traffic.

Price tag?  P600,000.

Again, let me clarify: I’m not saying no one should ever buy a P7M brand new luxury car.  Life is too complex to pontificate general rules for simplicity.  (Perhaps when I’m a billionaire, I’ll end up buying one.)

         This essay isn’t about giving you rules of simplicity but attitudes of simplicity.

         Before you buy anything, first think of the amount of money, energy, and time you’ll need to maintain it, dust it, insure it, clean it, protect it, and fix it.

         Believe me.  You are more than your wealth.

Let me ask you: Do you feel a need to impress others by what you wear?  Do you feel an attachment to material things?

Search for people you know who aren’t attached to material things but are happy, loving, and free.  Interview them.  Get some tips from them.  Be inspired by them.  And pray for this grace.

         May your dreams come true,

         Bo Sanchez

Live from the Core of Your Being by Bro. Bo Sanchez

It is not enough if you are busy.

The question is, What are you busy about?

–Henry David Thoreau

Happiness is not found outside of you.  It doesn’t come from cars, clothes, cash, or Caribbean cruises.  Happiness is found within.

But how can you find it if you don’t have the simplicity of time and space to discover the most important things in your life?  How can you search the depths of your soul if you are too busy impressing others, acquiring wealth, protecting your properties, and paying your debts?

Simplicity is NOT about the externals either: living in a doghouse, eating in a Hepatitis joint, wearing rags…

The best definition of simplicity I ever read comes from Janet Luhrs from her book, The Simple Living Guide.   There she says thatsimplicity is living from the core of your being.

I cannot agree more.

I believe that simplicity is having the time and space to embrace what is most important to you.  It is having the leisure to cherish them, having the freedom to glory in them, and having the power to live by them.

         Along the way, you’ll discover that the most important things in life aren’t things, but the persons that have been given to our lives.  But that’s something you’ll have to discover yourself.

         Give up shallowness.

         I repeat: Live from the core of your being.

Here’s my suggestion: Get a notebook and begin a journal for this book.  Write down your discoveries, insights, reflections.  What is yourcore?  What are the most important things in your life right now?  Do you allow your core to direct and empower your daily decisions and actions?

Live On Less & Delight In Them More

G.K. Chesterton said, There are two ways to get enough: one is to continue to accumulate more and more; The other is to desire less.

Let me clarify.  I’ll be the last person to tell you to stop trying to earn more.  Earn as much as you can and unleash your fullest potential, so that you can bless OTHERS.

But to protect yourself from greed, I urge you: Relish, taste, and immerse in the divine of the ordinary!  Because if you develop the capacity to suck all the joy that life has to offer, you don’t need expensive entertainment. 

I’m not ashamed to say that looking through an open window and seeing clouds drift by is Class A entertainment for me.  Doing that for just five minutes sets the tenor of my day.

         Some take their pleasure dining in classy restaurants, trips to Europe, and owning the latest home-theatre equipment.  Nothing wrong with those things, by the way.  Recently, I’ve been able to travel a lot with my family because God has blessed my businesses with abundance.  But I don’t depend on them for my core enjoyment.  For decades, I couldn’t do any of that, yet I was still very happy.  Why?  Because inwardly, I’ve chosen the simpler path: If I can simply be with my wife, or take a quiet stroll under a canopy of stars, or play with a child, or read a good book in my home, or laugh with friends over pizza, I consider myself richly blessed.

         Focus on what you have, not on what you don’t have.

         Because satisfaction doesn’t come from getting what you want, but wanting what you already have.

I have learned the secret of being content in any and every situation, whether well fed or hungry, whether living in plenty or in want.  I can do everything through him who gives me strength.

–Philippians 4:12-13

Think about it.

What do you have right now that you have been taking for granted?  List down in your journal fifty blessings you enjoy today.  Don’t stop until you reach fifty!

         Live on less and delight in them more.

May your dreams come true,

Bo Sanchez

Simplify and Live the Good Life by Bro. Bo Sanchez

(I have an oldie but goodie article below.  Enjoy.)

My parents breathed simplicity.

          Oxygen too, but that’s pretty obvious.

          Dad was an assistant vice president at a humongous company, yet I didn’t “feel” like I was a rich man’s kid.   Because my parents made it a rule to live below their means.

          A millionaire’s son rode a sleek Benz.  I rode our sixteen-year old Toyota that sounded more like a drum and bugle band, with its cacophony of bangs, rattles, and whams.  Oh yes, our neighbors had cars with a little bit of rust.  But we had rust with a little bit of car.  An heir of the moneyed class was chauffeured to school, but as early as Grade III, I was taking the public jeepney—sitting, standing, or swinging from its handrails like a flapping flag…

           The wealthy dined on gourmet meals every day.  But the culinary highlight of my whole week was when Mom bought Coke for our Sunday lunch—the only time we tasted the stuff.  I’m not kidding.

Rich kids wore outfits from America, England, and Paris.  I wore clothes from Avenida, Escolta, and Pasay.

           The mansions of the rich and famous are veritable furniture showcases, complete with sixteen Egyptian jars from the Nephriti era.  I learned that one of those monstrous flower vases was equal to the price of our entire house.  But naturally, we too had our own flower vases.  If my archeological knowledge serves me right, they came from the Nescafe era.

           Their estates have playrooms with life-size Barbie’s and Power Rangers.  But the way I played with expensive toys was admiring them from the store shelf and using my imagination to the hilt.  That way, I owned all the toys in the world.

           You’ll be shocked by what I’m going to tell you, but in all these, I recall never feeling deprived in anyway.

  Let me tell you why.

  I remember my father coming home every night and we’d go jogging together–around our old car parked in the garage.  (Dad says he wasn’t vying for the Olympics anyway.)  Then I’d sit on his lap and we’d talk about how to solve the problems of the universe.  After dinner, we’d read the comic pages together.  Tarzan was my favorite, until I reached puberty.  From then on, it became Jane.

Almost every Saturday afternoon, it was father and son time.  We’d walk to the shopping center and Dad would buy me a hotdog.  Then we’d walk back home, bringing some small thing for Mom, usually a chocolate bar.  To add sentimental value to our token gift, I forced myself to take a few bites from it.

I guess being with Dad and Mom were all that my little boy’s heart ever wanted.

And I got it, every single day.  

Start Living Deliberately

I believe that God chose to write the “map of happiness” in the ordinary parchment of simplicity—like a treasure map written on recycled brown paper.  Consequently, many people ignore the map, and are attracted instead to the more glossy, loud, shiny maps around.  But when they follow these others maps, they end up tired as a dog chasing it’s own tail.

         I have a radical suggestion.

         Simplify.

         Simplify because you want to discover the depths of your soul.

         Simplify because you want to start living deliberately.

         Simplify because you want to love from an uncluttered heart.

         Remember that simplicity is only a first step of the journey.  Holding the treasure map, memorizing it, photocopying it a thousand copies, and keeping it safe in a vault won’t make you claim the gold.  You actually need to sail through oceans, climb the peaks, cross the valleys, and dig in caves.

Simplicity will point to you where and what and who the gold is in your life.

         Once you know your gold, the game has just begun.

Will you treasure your gold?

         My parents knew their gold: (1) Each other, (2) their six children, and (3) their faith.  They tried to live uncluttered lives so that they could have time for what was most important.

They didn’t busy themselves buying a bigger house, because that would mean working harder to pay the monthly amortization, do overtime work, or take a second job.  Who would then go jogging with little Bo every night?  Who would read Tarzan for him?  They didn’t burden themselves buying a BMW because that would mean laboring and worrying about installment bills.  Besides, walking to the shopping center every Saturday afternoon with his son gave him exercise, and made little Bo feel special.

         One of the delights of my heart was seeing Dad and Mom in their bedroom at night, after our nightly family prayer.  The lights were turned off, and I’d see the silhouette of my father seated on his old chair and mom standing behind him, gently massaging his shoulders.  I’d hear them talk about what transpired in their day.  Even as a child, I sensed their quiet pleasure at being together.  My question today: Could they have done this rich ritual each night and nourished their marriage if they were busy paying designer outfits for themselves or their kids?  Or worrying about monthly bills for new hi-tech appliances?

         I don’t think so.

         And I’ve made the choice: I don’t want that kind of life either.

         In the next few weeks, it will be my pleasure to take you through the peaks and valleys of this journey towards happy simplicity.

         May your dreams come true,

         Bo Sanchez

Do You Want Success? Stop The Blame! by Bro. Bo Sanchez

  Do you want to succeed in life?

Stop whining. 

Take charge.

          Make things happen.

Here’s what I realized: Addicts are expert blamers.  They will never take charge.  They will never say, “I’m in charge.  Depending on what I choose, my life can be very beautiful or very ugly.”  Because addicts believe that others are to blame for their problem.

They had a survey—what is the common denominator of all successful people in the world. 

They checked family background—and they found nothing in common.  Some had great families while others had broken families.  They checked education—and there again, there was nothing in common.  Some had Ph.D’s while others didn’t even have a high school diploma.  They checked religion—and there was nothing in common.  Others were Christians, some were Muslims, some were Buddhists, some were atheists. 

There was only one thing that all successful people had in common: They responded to failure positively.   When the going gets tough, they took charge!  They took the steering wheel of their life and drove.

Let me correct a misunderstanding: Friend, you are NOT the passenger and God is the driver.  I’ve heard that analogy a lot.  Shucks, I’ve even taught it.  But it’s wrong.  Here’s a better analogy: You are a driver (because God gave you free will)—but God is the real owner of the car, the master mechanic riding with you in the car, the GPS guiding your car, and the powerful fuel in your car…

We Even Blame God!

       In Genesis, you find the famous “blame” verses in the Bible.

       First, Adam blamed Eve for his sin: “God, she made me do it.”

And then Eve blamed the snake for her sin: “Uh, this snake made me do it!”

This is shifting the blame. 

You don’t hear the words, “I did it.  I blew it.  It’s my fault.  I’m sorry.  Please forgive me.”  None.  Instead you hear words of blame.  Pointing fingers. 

       Actually, if you read the exact words of Adam, He was actually blaming God for his sin.  Adam said, “The woman YOU put here in the garden made me sin…”

       Tsk, tsk.

       That was why bestselling author Larry Crabb said that the problem of this world is really the problem of manhood.  He calls it the Silence of Adam.  He didn’t protect his wife Eve.  He allowed her to fall into sin—and even blamed her when he sinned.

I love what Bishop Ruben Abante told me.  He said the Bible does NOT say, “Wives, love your husbands”.  But it says, “Husbands, love your wives”.  How come? Because love should come from the husband.  When the husband loves the wife and the children, the wife and the children will love him.  Men must take charge for the spiritual life of the family.  When they take their leadership role seriously, abundance will flow.

“It’s Your Fault, Bo…”

One day, I was talking to a man who committed adultery.  He said, “Bo, if you knew my wife, you too would commit adultery.  Each day, I’d come home from work tired and exhausted, and I get nothing but nagging wife upset about this and upset about that.  Every single night.”  I felt so sad for him.  Because I knew he won’t change.

Before our conversation was over, his last words to me were, “I fell into adultery because YOU didn’t follow me up.  You’re my spiritual leader.  But you were too busy with other things…”

Groan.  So now it was my fault he committed adultery?

Don’t Even Blame Yourself

       Look, I’m not even asking you blame yourself.

       Just take responsibility.  (There’s a huge difference.)

       God is not in the business of blaming people.

       God is not in the business of condemning people.

God is in the business of loving people, forgiving people, and giving people abundance.

If you have fault, accept it.

If you have sin, admit your mistake.

But never condemn yourself!

The point is not to blame yourself for your mess.  The point is taking charge for creating a new life.

       Yes, accept the guilt. 

       But accept also the power to live a new life.

When you take responsibility, you don’t find fault—even on yourself.

Condemnation won’t heal you.  Judging yourself won’t heal you.  Taking a guilt trip won’t heal you.  Shaming yourself won’t heal you. 

Only love will.

“Learned Helplessness” Or “Learned Helpfulness”

If there’s such a thing as “Learned Helplessness”, let me introduce you to “Learned Helpfulness”.   Find the power that God has given you to change your life.  Learned helplessness happens one day at a time.  Learned Helpfulness happens one day at a time too.

       There are three kinds of people in the world:

·      Those who make things happen.

·      Those who watch as things happen.

·      And those who wonder, “What happened?”

       What kind of person are you?

Tied to The Mind

       Have you ever wondered why a gigantic elephant can be held by a rope around its leg tied to a flimsy stick dug in the ground?

       Here’s the secret: While the elephant was still a baby, its owner would tie it with the rope.  With much pain and a lot of frustration, the elephant tried to pull away but couldn’t.

       After a lot of pain and frustration, it learned that it was impossible to get away and break the rope.  Years later, even if the elephant was now a huge beast, weighing six tons, it doesn’t pull away. Why? Because the rope is tied to the mind, not to the body.

       Friend, have you been blaming that thin piece of rope tying you to your mess, your failure, your sin, your problem?

You’re not helpless.  You can change your life!  You can change your spiritual life.  Family life.  Financial life. 

Right now.

       May your dreams come true,

       Bo Sanchez