Not all insurance policies are created equal. While traditional plans are great, most insurance companies offer what is called as variable insurance, where a portion of your account is invested in different kinds of funds depending on your risk appetite. Go for trusted companies with a global presence and check their investment portfolio performance to see if their fund managers are doing their jobs. Lastly, make sure that your policy covers the risks you are mostly exposed to and generates the expected yield to cover your goals; hence, if you do not have dependents who will financially suffer from your death, life insurance is quite pointless. It is better to secure a health insurance policy, which are usually bundled with a minimum death benefit that should cover your funeral expenses.

According to the 2016 World Health Organisation (which is considered valid for 3 years), the average life expectancy of Filipinos is 66 for men, and 73 for women. With the advent of the latest medical advancements in wellness and nutrition, the general life expectancy is now pushed to around 80 years. A retirement plan can be integrated in your life insurance policy or can be invested separately in various instruments. The way to calculate an appropriate retirement plan is to see how much you will be needing from your date of your target retirement until your expected life expectancy age, taking into consideration an average of 5% of annual inflation rate.

Once you are financially secure in terms of your health and future, you can start investing to create a fund with which you can use to thrive and achieve bigger dreams. Low risk investments do not mean that there are guaranteed returns; this means that the risk are relatively low as they are invested in more stable instruments. These include treasury securities, bonds, and fixed annuities. The general rule, however, is that the higher the risk, the higher the return. So low risk investments, usually, yield lower returns.

Patience is key! If you are ready to play the long game, you can take on higher risk instruments. They generally have higher returns with the right conditions. Most people think that buying stocks, in particular, means actively trading and constantly looking at the numbers every hour. While good active trading practices do generate large sums, not everyone is adept to this kind of investing. Owning stocks means you get to own a piece of that company, and like any other business, they experience highs and lows. Most of the time, loyalty pays off, especially with blue chip companies. If you are trading on your own, go for companies who share the same vision as you. If you are investing through a broker, find someone who is not just reputable but someone who actually understands your needs and goals.