The national debt clock keeps ticking even on ordinary days—on quiet mornings when markets open, taxes are collected, and new borrowings are approved without drama. I find it disturbing that while nothing seems to be happening, the country is sinking deeper, and the bill is already being handed to people who are not yet born.

What unsettles me most is the idea that every Filipino child enters this world already owing money to a government they did not elect and policies they never approved. Debt is no longer just an economic figure flashed on screens; it has become an inherited condition. Long before a child learns to read, a portion of future income has already been reserved to pay for yesterday’s decisions. That reality should outrage any society that claims to care about its next generation.

Borrowing, in itself, is not evil. Governments borrow to build roads, fund schools, stabilize economies, and survive crises. The problem arises when debt stops being a tool and becomes a habit—when loans are taken not to create lasting value but to keep the machinery running. Much of what the country borrows today goes to paying interest on old debts, plugging budget holes, or sustaining bloated systems that refuse to reform. That is not an investment; that is survival financed by tomorrow’s labor.

What makes this worse is the pattern across administrations. Each new regime inherits a mountain of obligations, promises discipline, then proceeds to borrow even more under the familiar excuse of necessity. Debt balloons not because of one extraordinary event, but because overspending, weak revenue collection, and political convenience have been normalized. It is easier to borrow than to offend voters, confront inefficiency, or dismantle useless programs.

Taxes, meanwhile, become the quiet enforcers of this cycle. Every peso collected from workers, small businesses, and consumers ultimately serves a hidden purpose: debt service. Money that could have improved public hospitals, classrooms, or transport instead disappears into interest payments. People are told to be patient, to endure, to understand that this is how governments function. I have grown tired of that explanation. Endurance is not a development strategy.

There is also a moral weight to this problem that numbers fail to capture. Running a government on endless borrowing feels like throwing a feast today and sending the invoice to the unborn. It reflects a failure of imagination and responsibility, a refusal to live within limits. A nation that keeps mortgaging its future eventually loses the right to speak about long-term plans with a straight face.

What frustrates me further is how lightly this issue is discussed in public spaces. Debt is often framed as abstract, technical, or too complex for ordinary citizens to question. That framing is convenient. It dulls anger, discourages scrutiny, and allows the cycle to continue unchallenged. Yet debt is deeply personal—it shapes job opportunities, public services, prices, and the quality of life people experience every day.

If there is a way out, it begins with honesty and restraint. Borrowing should be rare, purposeful, and tied to outcomes that outlive political terms. Waste should be treated as a public offense, not a tolerated flaw. Above all, the country must learn to value the future as much as the present, because freedom from debt does not start with slogans—it begins with the courage to stop passing the burden forward.

The world is brimming with ideas, but only a select few blossom into successful businesses. So, what separates a fleeting thought from a truly promising business idea? It’s not just about cleverness or originality; a good business idea possesses a unique combination of factors that make it viable, sustainable, and ultimately, profitable.

1. Solves a Real Problem

The most fundamental characteristic of a good business idea is that it solves a real problem or fulfills a genuine need for a specific target audience. This could be a pain point that people experience regularly, an unmet desire, or an inefficiency in an existing process. The more significant the problem and the larger the target audience, the greater the potential for success.

Ask yourself:
• What problem does my idea solve?
• Who experiences this problem?
• How significant is this problem for my target audience?
2. Market Viability and Demand
A brilliant idea is worthless if there’s no market for it. A good business idea needs to have market viability, meaning there’s a sufficient demand for the product or service you’re offering. This requires thorough market research to understand the size of the potential market, the competitive landscape, and the willingness of customers to pay for your solution.

Consider these factors:
• Market Size: Is the target market large enough to support a sustainable business?
• Market Trends: Is the market growing or declining? Are there any emerging trends that could impact your business?
• Competition: Who are your competitors, and what are their strengths and weaknesses?
• Customer Willingness to Pay: Are customers willing to pay a price that allows you to generate a profit?

3. Unique Value Proposition
In a crowded marketplace, a good business idea needs a unique value proposition (UVP). This is what sets your business apart from the competition and gives customers a compelling reason to choose you over other options. Your UVP should clearly communicate the benefits you offer and why you’re the best choice for your target audience.

Crafting a strong UVP:
• Identify your target audience’s needs and desires.
• Highlight the unique benefits of your product or service.
• Explain how you solve the problem better than the competition.
• Keep it concise, clear, and memorable.

4. Scalability and Growth Potential
A good business idea should have scalability, meaning it can be expanded and grown without significant increases in costs or resources. This allows you to reach a wider audience, increase revenue, and improve profitability over time. Scalable businesses often leverage technology, automation, or partnerships to achieve rapid growth.

Consider these aspects of scalability:
• Technology Leverage: Can technology be used to automate processes and reduce costs?
• Partnerships: Can you partner with other businesses to expand your reach or offer complementary services?
• Franchise or Licensing Opportunities: Can your business model be franchised or licensed to others?

5. Feasibility and Execution
Even the most innovative idea is doomed to fail if it’s not feasible to execute. A good business idea needs to be realistic and achievable, considering your resources, skills, and the regulatory environment. This involves assessing the technical, financial, and operational requirements of the business and developing a solid plan for execution.

Assess feasibility by considering:
• Technical Feasibility: Can the product or service be developed using available technology and resources?
• Financial Feasibility: Can the business be funded and generate a profit?
• Operational Feasibility: Can the business be operated efficiently and effectively?
• Regulatory Feasibility: Are there any legal or regulatory barriers to entry?

6. Passion and Commitment
Finally, a good business idea needs to be fueled by passion and commitment. Starting and running a business is challenging, and it requires a significant investment of time, energy, and resources. Without a genuine passion for your idea, it’s difficult to persevere through the inevitable obstacles and setbacks.

Reflect on your passion by asking:
• Are you genuinely excited about your idea?
• Are you willing to dedicate the necessary time and effort to make it a success?
• Do you believe in the value of your product or service?

Conclusion
A truly good business idea is more than just a spark of inspiration. It’s a carefully considered concept that solves a real problem, has market viability, offers a unique value proposition, is scalable, feasible, and fueled by passion. By carefully evaluating your ideas against these criteria, you can increase your chances of launching a successful and sustainable business.
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If you have any questions or would like to share your thoughts on the column, feel free to send an email to jca.bblueprint@gmail.com. Looking forward to connecting with you!

THE story of Anna, already advanced in years and a widow, and who “departed not from temple, by fasting and prayers serving night and day,” (cfr. Lk 2,36-40) somehow reminds of those good old women who spend a lot of time in churches doing all sorts of devout practices and even offering to carry out tasks, often gratis, in parishes.

The younger generation may have some cheeky attitude toward them, but we cannot deny that they, like Anna, actually do a lot of good to all of us. In their own way, they keep and transmit time-honored pious traditions that would truly help alive our spiritual life.
Especially these days when we are often swept away by modern things that tend to detach us from the sources of our religious faith, their example deserves to be given due attention and imitation. Obviously, these pious traditions also evolve in some ways. But they just cannot be ignored.

Traditions are important in our life. They are like structures that help us cope with the different necessities of life. They have been built up from the common experiences of a person and of a society and are passed on from generation to generation.
That’s what tradition means. It’s a matter of handing down certain shared attitudes, practices, lifestyles from one generation to the next. It’s a continuing process that parallels and supports life itself.

Traditions can be personal, family, social, political, historical, cultural, and of course, religious that are in fact the most important. In other words, they correspond to our human needs taken either individually or collectively, spiritually or materially. In short, they cover all aspects of our life.

Traditions help keep life going, facilitating the performance of certain duties and the attainment of certain goals and ideals. They give some consistency to our life, and a reassuring sense of direction and fulfillment.

Since our identity as a person and as a people is often qualified by the traditions we practice, we need to make sure that we have good and healthy traditions, refining and polishing them along the way, or otherwise starting new ones as circumstances warrant.
New traditions somehow are born spontaneously. A certain spirit or ethos must be behind its making after a number of factors and relevant elements come together. There are also those that are quite deliberately engineered. But no new tradition comes about unless it has at least the tacit approval of the majority of the people.

Traditions also form some kind of basis or ground on which a person and a society grows and develops. They can be part of the raw material used for growth. Practically no one and no society can live without some tradition in place in their system. No one starts to develop from absolute zero. He has to begin somewhere.

We should try, however, to adapt traditions to changing circumstances while preserving their essence and spirit, striking a healthy balance between preserving tradition and embracing progress, innovation and positive change.

We should also be respectful of the diverse traditions we can have around, ever mindful of the cultural sensitivities of different communities and avoiding appropriating or misrepresenting traditions that are not our own.

We should also engage in open and respectful dialogue with people from different backgrounds to promote mutual understanding and appreciation. Ultimately, a balanced approach that combines respect, critical evaluation, and cultural sensitivity can help us navigate the complexities of tradition and its role in shaping our lives and communities.