So what happens now to this extra money? Forget spending. Seriously.=p Either save the extra cash or invest it.
Once you've established this fund, you can now take the path of a wise investor. The easiest way for busy people with no time to study and check the stock market is to invest their money in mutual funds. An example of a mutual fund distributor would be Sun Life Philippines. Yes, the corny P-YOLO kid who happens to be the son of Papa P himself always comes to mind. That commercial always gives me the shudders. Anyways. I would like to clarify that I am not in any way affiliated with Sun Life but I have an account with them for insurance and investment. But just a piece of advice, select your financial adviser carefully since that can make or break you.
If you're more the independent type who wants control, then go set up an account with an online stock broker. Here it's your call which stocks to buy and sell. The largest online stock brokerage in the country would be COL Financial Group, Inc. I enrolled in their Easy Investment Program last February 2013. I have only managed to buy 10k worth of stocks which is now valued at 10,100. Not bad for a beginner. But next year, I plan to restart investing and maybe slow down on my Sun Life mutual fund which is not exactly growing as expected. In hindsight, I know I didn't care enough to buy Sun Life shares while it was 'low'. Lesson learned - even mutual funds require some monitoring so you'd know when to take opportunity and acquire more shares.
The perfect time to start investing is as early as you can. Historically speaking, the stock market tends to go up over time so it is nearly impossible to lose your hard-earned money in it. The only question you need to answer is where to put your money. If you have not yet done your research like me, you can start investing in blue chip stocks (assuming you pick Option 2). And never underestimate the power of a good financial adviser because they are the ones who, for a living, closely monitor the stock market 24/7.
References:
http://www.sunlife.com.ph/philippines/Products+and+Services/Mutual+funds/Mutual+Fund+Basics?vgnLocale=en_CAhttps://www.colfinancial.com/ape/final2/home/new_to_investing.asp
UPDATE: colfinancial stocks as of today, 14 Jan 2015. Not bad, huh :)