Finding your niche and filling it yourself

I have lived in the Philippines for almost 7 years now.  When I came here, I had a wad of money that I had saved up in order to be able to make the move and have a comfortable life.  I didn’t have enough for a lifetime, but I had enough that my plan was that I could start up a business here with my money, and also live comfortably for about 3 to 4 years without worrying.  It didn’t exactly work out that way, but I learned.

I have been lucky.  I guess it’s mostly not just luck, though, it’s a lot of hard work.  When I saw that my plan would not work out the way that I expected, I was able to make adjustments and find new ways to make money.  Instead of my original plan to have a chain of Internet Cafes and earn my money in the local economy, I realized after about 2 years that I needed to find a way to earn my money abroad while living here in the Philippines.  Luckily, I had a little experience in earning some money off of the Internet.  In the States, I sold on eBay and supplemented my income there.  So, I started selling on eBay from here, then I branched out into online sales from my own e-commerce sites.  In the past year to year and a half I started blogging, where I could write and earn money from the advertising on my site.  I enjoy writing, I feel that I have something to write about, and the extra income is a nice side benefit.

I no longer sell on eBay, but I still do the e-Commerce sites and the blogging.  I use a combination of these two things to earn my living and be able to live anywhere in the world that I want to live in.

As an ex-pat, you find that you come in contact with a lot of other ex-pats where you live.  You get into e-mail correspondence with other ex-pats who live in other parts of the country, you meet other ex-pats who live in the same city where you live, etc.  In my case, word tends to get around that I have been able to earn a living here.  Most ex-pats tend to have a hard time earning money.  They either have to bring the money with them when they move here, or they have to periodically go abroad to earn another pile of cash so they can go live their ex-pat life a little longer.  When people hear that I have a “formula” for being able to earn a living here, I get e-mails or visits from them.  I hear sad stories on how they have been unable to make it financially.  I hear about how they lost all their money to dishonest businessmen who they got into business with.  Whatever story you can think of, I hear it from ex-pats here.

I am pretty free with sharing ideas and information.  I usually tell people that I can help them understand how to make money here, but that I will only show them how I do it if they will agree and promise me that they won’t just copy me outright on what I am doing.  Everybody can look at what a person is doing, make adjustments and sort of copy the formula, yet apply it to their own niche.  For example, on this blog, I blog about how to Live in the Philippines.  I can show somebody how to set up a blog, how to monetize it with advertising, how to write and generally how blogging works.  With this information, and their promise to not copy what I am doing, they should be able to come up with a niche topic of their own, and do it.  Instead of blogging about how to Live in the Philippines, maybe they want to blog about bird watching in Marinduque, maybe about their favorite football team, maybe about hurricanes…. whatever they have expertise on and an interest in can make for an interesting blog, and one that can earn them some extra money.  Wouldn’t you agree?  And, I don’t just teach people about blogging, I teach people about e-Commerce and basically anything else I am doing to earn money on the Internet.

All this is great, I enjoy helping people, and it builds some friendship between us.  It is all great, that is, until they break their promise to not copy exactly what I am doing.  So far, almost every person that I have tutored on earning cash on the Internet has made the decision to copy me.  For example, I have an online store called “WowPhilippines” where I sell gift items.  Three different people have made outright copies of that after learning from me how to do it.  Is that right?  I finally decided to stop teaching people how to do the e-Commerce.  The good thing for me is that on these cases, their stores never did catch on, and they did not persevere long enough to make that happen.  They tried it for a few months and abandoned it when the riches did not come immediately.

This morning, I got an e-mail from a guy that I taught about blogging a few months ago.  He is a nice guy, I genuinely like him.  When he started blogging, after my tutoring, he chose a topic to blog about that is somewhat similar to this blog.  I blew it off, though, because I figured that it was not exact, and there were plenty of things for each of us to write about anyway, without stepping on each other’s toes.  When he e-mailed me, he asked me if I could send him a list of all my blogs (I have over 100 blogs, and a staff of bloggers to post on many of them) so that he could start reading them.  Before e-mailing him back, I decided to go have a look at his blog.  Hmm… one of the titles of a post was almost identical to a post that I made on this blog last week.  That’s a little strange, but probably just a coincidence, I thought.  I went to look at the post, and it was an exact copy of my post, almost word for word!  A few words were changed, but it was clear where the text came from before being changed here and there!  So, not only did he use my idea for a general blog topic, now he was cutting and pasting my posts into his blog?  Well, that just doesn’t seem right to me.  If he had cited my blog as the originator of the post, that would be different, but he didn’t even mention my post, he just stole it from me.

So, basically, when you decide to move to the Philippines, or any other country, if you are planning to do something to help you keep some money coming in, you have to be careful.  My advice, based on my experience would be to keep a low profile.  Don’t share much information on how to do what you are doing.  Leave it as a mystery.  True, it is not very helpful toward your friends and fellow ex-pats, but at least you can keep your ideas for yourself, and not be copied.

Philippine disasters are disastrous

In reading the news, have you noticed that there are always disasters striking the Philippines?  It is true.  Every year there are always a number of typhoons that ravage the country.  They wipe through areas and leave nothing but devastation.  Also, the Philippines sits right on top of the infamous “ring of fire,” so there are, almost every year, volcanoes going off, many earthquakes and such.  This past year we have had another type of disaster that is somewhat rare here - tornadoes.  Just last night we had a tsunami warning here after two strong earthquakes in Taiwan.  So, natural disasters kill many in the Philippines.  They cost a lot of money for the government here too.  On top of that, the cost to the people is enormous!  There is not a “safety net” here like in the USA where the Government tends to help people get back on track after a disaster.

However, even with all these natural disasters, there is another type of disaster in the Philippines that is probably at least as costly, both monetarily and also in terms of lives lost.  I am talking about man-made disasters.  How many times do you read in the newspaper about ferries sinking and leaving hundreds of people dead?  Just on Christmas day this year there was a supermarket in Leyte that burned to the ground due to errant fireworks.  Many people were killed in this disaster.  Every year on Christmas and New Years there are dozens or more people who are killed or maimed by fireworks.  People lose their eyes, blow off their hands, etc.  Yes, fireworks here are very popular.  I see little 2 and 3 year old kids blowing off powerful fireworks by themselves, with no adult supervision!  Also, during New Years people like to shoot off their guns into the air to make noise.  Every year there are a few people killed by this practice too.

For me, it seems that lives are just wasted by these man-made disasters!  Let’s take the ferry boats that are constantly sinking.  Why do things like this happen?  Well, what usually happens is that the boats are extremely overloaded.  Even with signs clearly posted saying the passenger limit for the boat, it is ignored and they will squeeze on every passenger that can possibly fit on the boat.  Usually, there are not an adequate number of life preservers, if any at all.  It’s a disaster just waiting to happen!

It would seem to me that with just a little bit of fortitude and a campaign to make people think more about their safety, the number of lives lost in the Philippines could be greatly reduced, and life would improve here.  This is just another thing to think about if you are trying to decide whether to move here in the future.  Most of these things (not the natural disasters) can be avoided with just a little common sense.

Thanks to Alan in Malaysia who regular reads this blog.  He asked me to write about this topic.  Alan was right, this is an important consideration for anybody thinking of living here.

Can you handle the noise?

The Philippines is a noisy place, I don’t think anybody can argue against me on that.  As I am sitting here at my desk writing this post, over the last five minutes I have heard all of these sounds outside my window:

• A rooster next door has been letting out his “cock-a-doodle-do” about three times per minute
• There is a house being constructed behind mine and they have been working since around 6am with lots of hammering, cement mixer sounds, general noise
• A few minutes a garbage truck was picking up garbage and honking his horn endlessly
• The construction crew is playing their radio quite loud
• Traffic is passing by on the somewhat busy street in front of my house - car engines, horns etc accompany the traffic

So, as you can see, there is plenty of noise to keep my ears full!

The truth, though, is that I am used to it (except the rooster, which is a new addition to the neighborhood).  It doesn’t bother me much anymore.  When I talk to, or get e-mails from other ex-pats who live here, noise is one of the most heard complaints about living here.  And, the number one noise maker that I hear about are roosters crowing.  Can you get used to it?  What do you think?  If you plan to live in the Philippines, you will have to get used to the noise here.  There is no escaping it!  You will experience noise like this whether you live in the middle of the City, or out in the Province.  Adjust, or forget making the move!

As a friend and I often tell each other - we’re not in Kansas anymore!

Being an ex-pat gets a little harder

Over the past 1 year or slightly longer, the US Dollar has been falling like a rock!  It seems that whatever the bad news for the Philippine economy, the Peso still gains strength against the Dollar.  Keep in mind, if you are an American and you get your money from some US source, this means that your spending power is decreasing almost every day!

Let’s take a look at the value of the Dollar over the past few years.  All conversions will show the value of the Dollar in December of each year:

2003:  P55.59 is equal to $1
2004:  P56.28 is equal to $1
2005:  P53.60 is equal to $1
2006:  P49.39 is equal to $1

Wow!  Can you imagine, since December 2004, the Dollar has lost  around 12% of it’s value?  That is a huge loss in just two years.  And, that is just the beginning of your loss in spending power, because inflation in the Philippines is relatively high.  It would be my estimate that you now must spend 20% more in Dollars to buy the same items that you could buy just 2 years ago.  For some who are on a tight budget, this is a major loss in purchasing power.

I have been lucky, because I have enough income that I am able to withstand this loss, but some others are not as lucky.

The truth is that the US Dollar is declining worldwide, not just against the Peso.  It was not that long ago when you could buy a Euro for under $1.  Today, it costs more than $1.30 to purchase a  Euro.  A British Pound Sterling is almost $2 today.

Of course, currency exchange rates go in cycles.  In another year or two, we could be in the opposite situation with the Dollar being strong.  Right now, though, the Dollar is as weak as I ever remember it being when weighed against a wide variety of worldwide currencies.

Philippine Economists in the Government here are talking of a Peso at about P45 to the Dollar in the relatively near future (2007 or 2008).  That’s almost another 10% of the value of the Dollar vanishing in a year or so.

If you are considering making a move to the Philippines, or anywhere outside the United States this is something to keep in mind.  The Dollar may continue sliding before it stages a rally again.  Don’t leave yourself short!

Do you know what Noche Buena is?

I guess that no matter where in the world you go, if it is a different place from where you came from the customs will be different.  Variety is the spice of life, isn’t that what you’ve heard?

Here in the Philippines, it is no exception.  Celebrations are different here than where I came from.  Let’s take a look at Christmas, since we are in the season.

The real centerpiece of the Christmas Celebration here is called “Noche Buena”.  It is a meal that is shared, usually around Midnight in the evening of December 24/morning of December 25.  Any kind of food can be enjoyed during Noche Buena, but some foods are special, and are sort of “expected” on the Noche Buena table.  For example, ham is a popular food to have for Noche Buena.  Also, Quesa de Bolo (a ball of cheese).  During Noche Buana, in addition to the meal, it’s a time for family to gather and enjoy each other’s company.  Children will play with their brothers, sisters, cousins and any other kids that are around.  Even very poor families will scrape up what they can to have the best meal they can.

Here in the Philippines, Christmas presents are not as big as they are in the West. Of course, many Filipinos give presents to each other, but usually smaller ones than we are used to in the west.  Also, if it comes down to a choice between buying gifts and being able to have a Noche Buena, the meal will win out, no doubt.

In my family, we have decided to stick with our own Christmas traditions that we brought with us from the States.  We understand and respect the Filipino traditions, but the way that I celebrated Christmas all my life is special to me, and I want to pass that on to my kids.  My Filipina wife lived in the States for 10 years and she came to adopt my family’s tradition, so she is most comfortable with our celebration now too.

We all have our own ways of celebrating the holidays.  Heck, it varies from family to family no matter where you live.  No reason why it can’t be like that here too.

Merry Christmas!

Getting into the Christmas Spirit

For most people who read this blog, they are probably used to having cold weather, even snow for the Christmas Season.  Of course, if you are in the Southern Hemisphere (Australia, New Zealand, anywhere south of the Equator) you are the opposite and it is Summer at this time of year.  Still, I believe that the vast majority of our readers are in the Northern Hemisphere and in Cold Weather parts of that Hemisphere.

For me, I come from Washington State, in the Pacific Northwest area of the United States of America.  During December it is normally cold there.  We didn’t usually have snow for Christmas, but sometimes we did.  But, I don’t remember a time when it wasn’t cold in December.  Normally, it was raining and icy at this time of year too.  When I moved to the Philippines, I had not thought about the fact that it would be a HOT Christmas from that point on.  The first few years, it just didn’t seem like Christmas to me, and I had a hard time feeling festive in the hot weather.

So, the question came about… what do I need to do to get into the Christmas Spirit that I missed so much.

I didn’t really know what to do.  I thought about it and thought again, but couldn’t find a solution.  Then, one year, on December 24, my wife and I were out shopping.  I told her that I had an idea.  We went to a local fast food restaurant and bought enough food for a few hundred meals, then we got the kids, loaded up the food into the car and drove around town, giving meals to homeless people on the streets.  We primarily focused on street children, although anybody who looked like they were going hungry tended to get a meal.   We even gave food to some traffic police and such who were working hard on that Christmas Eve day.

After we finished giving out the food, I realized that I really felt great!  It worked!  I felt like it was Christmas again!  My only sorrow was that I wished that I had more food to give out.  Now, every year my family and I figure out something to do to help poor people, and it makes us all feel that it’s Christmas time again!

So, the lesson that I learned is that Christmas doesn’t have anything to do with the weather.  You can do other things to get that Spirit that you used to associate with Cold Weather!

Merry Christmas, everybody!

How about all those typhoons?

Over recent months, almost anybody who has seen any TV weather reports has seen that a number of typhoons have hit the Philippines recently.  In the past three months, four different typhoons have struck the country.  Just under two weeks ago, Super-Typhoon Durian killed over 1,000 people here in the Philippines.  Another storm is headed this way right now.

Did you know that around 20 to 25 typhoons hit the Philippines on an average year?  Of course, most of the storms are small and not all that threatening.  But, when a big storm hits, it is time to move out of the path!  Luckily for me, Mindanao (where I live) is outside the typhoon belt, so we don’t experience such storms down here.  Luzon and the Visayas is where you need to keep an eye on weather reports for your own safety.  Did you know that typhoons can hit this part of the world at any time of the year?

I wouldn’t be too scared away by these storms.  Just use your common sense, keep abreast of weather conditions, and move out of the way if you are in a storm’s path.

Attention - new procedure for tourist visa renewal

Just a quick note for anybody who is coming to the Philippines on a tourist visa.  As I have said before, on your initial tourist visa, which is automatically issued upon entry, you get to stay in the country for 21 days.  Near the end of your 21 day stay, if you wish to stay in the Philippines longer, you will need to go and extend your visa.

In order to renew your visa, you need to go to the Bureau of Immigration (BoI) and file for an extension.  The process has changed slightly, though, and you need to know before you go to the BoI.   They are now requiring that you present two ID photos (2″x2″ each) with your application.  If you do not have the photos, your visa extension will be denied.

Getting the photos is very easy.  On nearly any street block in the Philippines you can find a shop or even street stand where they take ID photos for a very small price.  Just stop at any of these and pick up your photo on the way to your visa renewal at the BoI.