Imagine you’re staring at the sparkling lights, feeling the cold breeze while enjoying a cup of hot chocolate on your red and green cardigan. The holiday is here. Not just getting excited about the Christmas season but more excited about the 13th-month pay and Christmas bonus.

Wondering where should your bonus pay and cash gifts should go? Here are some investments under 30K for all Filipinos.

1. Life Insurance

Get life insurance. Options regarding life insurance are diverse depending on your needs and budget. You only live once, and you’ll never know how long or short. Better be financially protected in case of emergency. Look for a reputable insurance company and discuss the products that match your needs. Payment can be monthly, semi-annually, annually, or one-time. Start young as premiums (payment) go higher as you grow older.

It’s not bad to reward yourself from time to time, but make sure that your health is safeguarded first. It’s cliché, but health truly is wealth.

2. Stocks

A lot of people stay away from stocks because they don’t understand how it works. However, if you stay on mere savings, you won’t be able to beat inflation in the future. You should expand your wealth through investing, and investing in stocks is one way to do it. It requires effort to understand its market, but resources are available anywhere.

Instead of checking out all of your wants, allocate your money on long-term investments like stocks. Well-managed funds can make you afford more than the products on sales you see on e-commerce websites.

3. NFT

Non-fungible tokens have gained popularity during the pandemic. This also brought cryptocurrencies into the spotlight. If you are a gamer or an individual who loves to play online, this is a hit-two-birds-in-one-stone approach to earning money. An example of this is Axie Infinity that is massively recognized in the Philippines. Different games entail different NFTs and cryptos, thus prices vary. It’s best to invest in a promising crypto game when it’s not yet full-blown.

While NFTs and crypto-games are considered highly volatile, they are lucrative that can get you to earn big in a short period. You just have to study the trends and whatnot to avoid spending your hard-earned money in vain.

4. Food Business

If you’re inclined more on cooking, serving, and delivery, venture your capital into the food business. Competition might be tight so you need to be innovative and consistent. You don’t need to add more food that is similar to others on the menu. You just need at least one delicious food that people would love to come back to again, and start there.

If you know well you market, join the hype and sell trending foods in your area. Branch out or open a food cart on your location. Reach out to businesses who would offer branching out or food cart package. This might be a good option especially when your location is far from the metro.

5. Buy and Sell

Accept it or not, millennials shine brightly when it comes to buying and selling. Making something good about out of their background as they experience both manual and electronic ages. Acknowledging the fact people need a different source of income and using the digital lines to sell their products is a game-changer.

At the age of add-to-carts, we can earn by buying these 11.11 products. On your favorite app, search for affordable but quality products, be they locally or internationally made. You can also tie-up with small businesses and start selling their products online. Commissions might be small depending on how much you can sell, but posting products to sell online won’t hurt.

Instead of just scrolling pictures and videos of your friends living their best lives, why not use this time to sell them goods also?

6. Upskilling

Invest in yourself. Is there a skill you want to learn or improve on? Then, enroll yourself in short courses and get a certificate. While there are free resources available online, there is still a difference between learning from a trusted industry expert and comprehensive masterclasses through paid courses. You should be very keen to find out the best course providers as some ask for a high fee, but offers basic lessons.

Once you are upskilled, you can offer your new skills and services to people who need them. It becomes another source of income. You can be a part-time or full-time freelancer. Land into online jobs through upskilling on photo-video editing, virtual management, social media management, customer service, online teaching, and graphic designing. Work from the comfort of your home and earn bucks of money.

7. Real Estate

Before jumping into this kind of investment, learn first why you would like to buy a real estate property. Determine if it’s for investment or personal use. If your real estate property doesn’t generate income, it will never be an investment rather a liability. Study well before committing yourself and your money to buying a property.

Think of ways on how are you going to generate income out of your property. Use the income generated to pay for the monthly mortgage. In this case, you’ll be hitting two birds in one stone. You’ll have a property and an extra income. Best locations for real estate property generate the best income.

Your Takeaway

Last year must be hard for most of us. Pandemic hit most of the businesses that hinder us to celebrate holidays just like before. Worry no more since the economy is starting to sparkle again.

To be more prepared for what is to come, we must be, again, financially capable. Make it a habit to spare some cash for savings and spend the rest on your needs and wants. Like many experts say, build your emergency fund first before jumping into investing. Emergency Fund usually amounting to three to six months of your monthly spending. Budgeting and savings are the keys.

So, with the provided investment recommendations, which one resonates with you the most? Enjoy your bonus pay and cash gifts without sacrificing your financial goals. Don’t forget to share a little with your loved ones and people who need help.