Self improvement

From Terra to Hodlnaut, Celsius and Three Arrows Capital, 2022 will be remembered as the year of the implosion of crypto. The latest to join the list is FTX, which counted Temasek Holdings as one of its biggest backers. Indeed, the bloodbath of crypto had caused plenty of heartaches for retail investors. As we approach the end of the year, it is timely to do some reflections.

In this article, I will share my insights on three important money advice. The story is written from the perspective of Christianity but I have adapted the story to reframe it from the angle of wealth building. Note that I am not a Christian and this is definitely not an article meant to spread Christianity. Instead, I believe that readers can benefit very much from this sharing in the course of their financial journey.

In life, we will always receive money advice from well-meaning friends and relatives. Yet, very often, it is only those simple money advice that really withstand the test of time. As a matter of fact, the three money advice contained in this article served me rather well in my financial journey. Thus, I am sharing this article with readers.

Lifetime Membership  The story of selling combs to monk is an age-old story that never fails to inspire me to become a better version of wealth builder. Most people regard it as a motivational story for salesmen to achieve sales target. But I see it as otherwise because the learning points can also be applied in investing, career development and entrepreneurship.

I have adapted the story for the sake of my followers. But before proceeding, readers must note that this article is not meant to mock any religion nor aim to make fun of any professionals. My objective is to inspire readers to learn how to be better wealth builders. In today’s context, this is important because hard work alone would get you nowhere in this competitive society.

Once upon a time, a merchant who owned a comb factory in Singapore wanted to penetrate the huge China. Thus, he advertised for a position of Regional Sales Manager in the newspaper. Understandably, many applicants applied for the job. Therefore, during the interview sessions, he asked the applicants on how they would sell combs to monks. Many of the candidates were stumped by his question because we all know monks do not need combs.

LIFETIME MEMBERSHIP It has been more than a year since the outbreak of COVID-19. Just when we thought that the vaccines would enable the world to see light at end of tunnel in 2021, mutant variants have led to multiple waves of infections across countries. In Singapore, we are in a month-long of heightened alert, with new measures being implemented to curb the spread of the virus. Against this depressing backdrop, I thought it is useful to pen down some thoughts on happiness habits.

No doubt about it. Pandemic has caused many to feel anxious, depressed and stressed out. The social restrictions and public health measures not only upend our social and work routines, they have also contributed to plenty of financial woes as those working in sectors badly hit got laid off. With these challenges confronting us on a daily basis, finding happiness may seem like easier said than done.

Indeed, I am not going to sugar-coat and claim that finding happiness is a straightforward thing. It does take effort but it is not unattainable. To achieve happiness, there is a need to shift our mental modal. Given that there are reports of rising mental health cases in Singapore, I hope this article will serve as a motivation to inspire people to take charge of their lives and harness the power of happiness.

In life, time flies. In the blink of an eye, it has been 10 years since I founded SG Wealth Builder! It seems like yesterday when I founded SG Wealth Builder. I can still remember the raw passion and explosive excitement when launching this wealth blog.

A decade had passed and the energy remains amazingly strong. During this period, many fellow bloggers had come and go. Some of them were really outstanding bloggers but fizzled out in no time. Nevertheless, I continued to push on and the brand of this blog grew from strength to strength. Over time, I have also developed a voice that connects with my readers. It is this distinctive voice that attracted readers to keep coming back to this blog and many had become long-time followers.

Value is what attracted readers and followers to SG Wealth Builder. Many people who visited my blog had provided numerous feedback that they had learned useful things that they were able to apply in their wealth building journey. Such compliments often invoked deep sense of self-satisfaction and achievement inside me.

To be able to make a difference in others certainly create a profound feeling.

It is often said that regret is the most terrible thing that can happen to anyone. When we talk about regrets, images of unfulfilled dreams and results of inactions may flash across your mind. Indeed, people tend to have the most clarity of mind in their dying moments. After all, there is a saying that goes “a healthy person can have many wishes but a sick person will have only one wish”. In one of the most poignant moment, a former nurse (Bronnie Ware) revealed in her blog the biggest regrets of the dying.

Bronnie spent several years caring for the dying and her job was to counsel terminally ill patients in their final moments. Her article on the biggest regrets of the dying is considered to be thought provocative and holds profound impacts for many. We can gain valuable insights from those are near the end of their life journey and make meaningful changes to our lives before it’s too late. In this article, I will share my thoughts on the top 3 biggest regrets of the dying.

1. I wish I had the courage to live a life true to myself, not the life others expected of me.

Whether you are an employee or entrepreneur, you must always strive to master the art of selling. As an employee, you are always selling your skill-sets to your employer and prospective customers. For a business owner, to be able to sell is a given. In this regard, I cannot emphasize enough how important it is to master the art of selling because it is considered the single most important factor that determines whether you can succeed in life.

In 2017, I wrote an article, “you can sell combs to monks”. Readers can subscribe as members to access the full article but I would like to succinctly use that article to expand on several learning points on how to be a successful wealth builder. In this blog, it is my desire to help people become successful in their wealth journey because it gives me joy to know that people have learned from my articles.

In the story of selling combs to monks, three candidates were selected by a Singaporean merchant to sell combs to monks in China. We all know that monks do not need combs as they are bald, so selling combs to monks is like asking the candidates to do the impossible.

Yet another Singapore finance blog bites the dust. SG Young Investment is the latest local finance blogger to take a hiatus. This followed hot on heels the announcements from 15HWW and  Cheerful Egg, who are taking a long break from blogging.

Whenever such depressing news surfaced, I am always affected emotionally, spiritually and mentally. This is because when you have people leaving the scene, it is never a good thing. How can we build a vibrant ecosystem when you have players exiting one by one? And we are talking about good players, not mediocre ones.

Although the exodus of finance blogs is not new, it highlights the fragility of the finance blog fraternity. Over time, if we are not careful about it, the community of finance blogs may become a thing of the past. Is this what Singaporeans want? I always believe the sum of parts is greater than the strength of a person. In this regard, I would like to share the story of the three thirsty monks.

The three thirsty monks

Once upon a time in China, there lived a young monk who lived in a temple high up on a mountain. Every dawn, he had to wake up very early and used a pole to fetch two pails of water from a well located at a far-away valley.

Have you ever been told that you are stupid and that you will never achieve financial success? I ever did suffer from such traumatic experience when my Chemistry tutor (who happened to be my civic tutor) labelled me as “stupid” in front of the class during a laboratory experiment.

In life, our encounters and experiences shape our perspectives. Subconsciously, the actions and words of those around us could have significant impacts on us,  though they may not harbour any ill-intentions. To achieve financial success, we need to overcome such negativity.

But simply telling people who are slow to “buck up” or “work harder” will not serve to motivate that person to improve. Conversely, you are likely to trigger a defensive mechanism than inspiring him to change for the better.

In this article, I will share my insights on how we can achieve financial success by programming our mind to accomplish greater things. Read on if you are interested to become a better wealth builder and achieve financial success in your life.

In school, we don’t learn such stuff. And nobody ever coached me on mind programming. Thus, when I was being labelled as “stupid”, I felt lost. But through this blog, I hope to encourage fellow Singaporeans to become a better version of themselves.

The recent case of Annie Ee Yu Lian, a mentally disabled woman who was tortured to death by her long-time friend, certainly caused outrage among Singaporeans. It is indeed a tragic story and should never have happened in a first world country like Singapore. It made me wonder whether in the pursuit of wealth, can we afford to become a more gracious and caring society?

In life, what goes around comes around. I always believe in paying it forward. In response to my previous article, “GST should be raised to 12%”, some readers had also expressed concerns that the poor would be the most affected by the impending tax hike. Although such concern is indeed valid, it is important to note that part of the increased government spending could be on social needs. Then again, the perennial thinking is that the government should be responsible for making Singapore a caring society. Below is an article I wrote in 2014. I hope readers would be inspired to reach out for our fellow Singaporeans.

The scene was at a supermarket where grandmother and her two grandchildren were shopping for groceries. Her granddaughter saw a lovely strawberry cake and wanted to buy it.

If you’re someone who doesn’t like to spend a lot of time shopping online, scrolling through endless choices that force you to eventually give up, A Better Florist is the florist for you. They make your complete shopping experience a total breeze. Not only is it easy to shop via desktop or mobile, they offer high-class blooms at lowest prices.

If you’re impressed by quality not quantity, this is the florist that is going to suit your taste. Their website isn’t overflowing with information. They know their clientele is there to purchase authentic, impressive blooms, and they are dedicated to giving you enough choices but not so much that you aren’t able to decide. At all times, you’re able to jump on their website, and choose one of the most popular bouquets, arrangements or bundles, that are always ready to go. Just click on your favourite, and your shopping experience may begin.

It’s my favourite cheap florist in Singapore, whose blooms impress me over and over again. Not only are they fresh, they are carefully and thoughtfully designed into a bundle that is sure to impress even the most avid flower connoisseurs.

They call themselves the bloomcrew, and their expertise definitely deserve even a higher title than just crew.

Over the years, I noted a significant change in the social behavior among Singaporeans. We have become more cynical and developed a tendency to politicize issues in our daily lives. The mood has changed to the extent that I feel that we have lost the appreciation of the gift of life.

Being the most expensive city in the world, it is true that many of us struggle to make a living in Singapore. But then again, everyone encounters struggles in their lives as well. Nobody is born into this world without any struggles, worries or challenges. If you are able-bodied and is in the pink of health, consider yourself to be very lucky and do count your blessing.

Health is an incredibly important asset that is often being overlooked and under-appreciated. We start to cherish health only when we are about to lose it. This should not be the case. In fact, to be alive and able to enjoy the gift of life is a form of privilege. We should not abuse this privilege. Instead, we should always strive to identify the abundance of opportunities when we are healthy and make the best out of them.

Then and now

In my point of view, the major source of our discontentment can be attributed to our desire for more material comforts.

Very often, we get so busy making a living that we forget to live a life. The woodcutter story never fails to drive home in me the importance of self cultivation. The story goes like this:

One day, a timber owner advertised for a helper to help him cut the trees. A very strong woodcutter applied and got the job. The pay was good and working condition was excellent. Eager to impress his boss, the woodcutter was determined to do his job well and so started work the next day.

In his first day, the woodcutter was extremely motivated and managed to cut 20 trees. The boss was delighted and praised him “Good job and well done!”

On the second day, driven by his boss’ praise, the woodcutter tried even harder but surprisingly could only deliver 10 trees. The third day, he tried his very best but managed to bring in only 5 trees. The next day, he could not cut a single tree and began to panic.

The woodcutter went to see his boss and profusely apologized for not delivering in his job. Curious, the boss asked him “Did you sharpen the axe?”

“Huh? Sharpen the axe? Gosh no! I have been busy cutting the trees that I have no time to sharpen my axe!”

In recent years, there has been a proliferation of finance bloggers joining the scene. Many of them are good bloggers who write better than me. But in my humble opinion, what differentiates a great blogger from a good blogger is his ability to create inspirations among readers. In one of his latest articles, Singapore finance blogger, “Got Money, Got Honey” (GMGH), inspired me.

In his article, GMGH articulated very well his philosophy of giving. I was very impressed by his structured thought-process because although most people donate to charity, not many can think so deeply as him. It also set me thinking about the future direction of my own blog.

As a Singapore finance blogger, it was never my intention to become an influencer in the first place. My original idea was to create a crowd-source platform that attracts readers to contribute ideas on various wealth building ways. Over time, SG Wealth Builder has evolved into a wealth blog that focuses mainly on stock analysis, gold bullion and career management.

There are many Singapore finance bloggers who write about their dividend income reports and portfolio performance. They contribute interesting articles but I seldom read such articles because I prefer to look at those with deep analysis on stocks.

The latest labor market report released by Ministry of Manpower is discouraging for many job-seekers. Employment growth has slowed down and unemployment and redundancies have risen in the second quarter of 2016. In this uncertain market condition, it may not be wise to switch career or even quit without a job. However, regardless the case, you do not leave your financial destiny in the hands of your employer.

In today’s context, it is not realistic for Singapore employees to trust that they will never be made redundant. The rapid changes in technology inevitably led to unexpected transformation in various industries, resulting in massive restructuring in our economy. This means that many jobs have become obsoleted and when affected employees are laid off, their positions disappeared as well.

Thus, if you are not careful, you may find yourself in the frightening prospect of being retrenched. Even in the civil service sector, which is well-known in Singapore for being an iron-rice bowl employer, contract jobs have become prevalent. Being a contract worker, you may be let go after your employment contract expired. Even if you are a permanent staff working in the civil service, it does not mean that your career longevity is guaranteed.

Our ability to excel in life lies on whether we can constantly re-invent ourselves to continue playing the game. To achieve this, we need to keep learning new skills and knowledge in this new economy in order to position ourselves for success. Obviously to a certain extent, most of us yearn for career success but how many of us are willing to learn and earn? There is no secret winning formula as everyone has a different life path. But then again, successful wealth builders almost certainly share some common traits.

Receptive to new ideas

Even though you may be very experienced or have deep expertise in your job, you should always stay curious and be receptive to new ideas. In my job journey, I have come across many colleagues who are afraid of experimenting different approaches to resolve issues because they only believe in tried-and-tested methods. Because of their rigid mindsets, work productivity were often affected.

A few years ago when Singapore exempted Goods and Services Tax (GST) for investment-grade bullion, I asked a few fellow investment bloggers their main reasons for not buying gold and silver in Singapore. Most of them shared that they don’t believe in diversifying their wealth in gold and prefer to focus on Singapore shares.

From time to time, I like to review my previous blog posts. In an enlightening interview I done with Gerald Tay of Conspiracy of Real Estate Investments (CREi) Academy Group, I realized how accurate his predictions were in 2013. Check out my old article here.

As a wealth builder, I have deep respect for Gerald Tay because he was born to a rich family but subsequently had to start from square one because of some unforeseen family financial difficulties. As a result, his perspective is unique as he knows what it is like to be rich and poor. Below is an eerily accurate predictions made by Gerald in 2013 from my interview with him:

The recent stock market routs must have caught many small time investors by surprise. The Dow Jones had the worst five day trading performance in history, wiping off trillion of dollars from the market. Both the oil decline and China’s stock market 7 percent drop combined to send Wall Street plunging down the cliff. In the midst of the chaos, many investors must be pondering whether to enter or exit the market.

Taking control 

Most people know that investing is all about emotions – greed and fear. These two emotions often over rule our rational thinking and affect our decision making in investments. To be a successful investor, it certainly take more than knowledge to make money from stocks. You need to take positive action. To take the emotions out of investing, you must set stop-gain or stop-loss level for every stock that you invested in. In doing so, there will be less chances of you looking back in regrets for selling a surging stock too early or live in fear for not selling away your stock investments during market sell-off. You will also have clarity when to enter the market and buy a certain stock.

Truly dividend or long term investors?

As a young parent, I always believe in giving the best for my children. In this regard, my wife and I have been sending my daughter for enrichment classes with the view of developing her thinking, speaking and writing skills. These are the three skills one should possess in order to succeed in life, so we hope to give her a good start.

Contrary to what many people thought, being academically good does not mean you are well-equipped to achieve great things when you enter the workforce. I have seen many scholars who can think and write well but cannot speak confidently in public. Like-wise I have many ‘A’ list friends who can think fast and speak confidently but lack substance in their writing. Henceforth, my view is that it is important to lay a strong foundation for these three skills, starting from a young age. At the end of the day, even if my children did not achieve great things, at least I hope to mold resilient characters in them so that they can overcome obstacles in life.

Thinking Skill

I have been sending my daughter to attend lessons at Clay Works Singapore in East Point Shopping Mall. The idea is to encourage her to think creatively and also to let her experience the fun of learning.

I just came back from a Japan business trip and thought that it is timely to blog down some of my thoughts arising from the experience. This is the 6th time that I visited Japan and previously they were all business trips that lasted only a week. What made this trip quite memorable was that I had the chance to visit several interesting places at Tokyo with my colleague.

The first place that we visited in Japan was Daibai to see the giant Gundam robot at Gundam Front Tokyo. I am not a big fan of Gundam but nevertheless was infected by my colleague’s enthusiasm. The place is really unique as there is a Gundam museum with hundreds of Gundam robot figurines and a movie theatre playing Gundam shows.

Beyond the fanfare of Japanese anime and manga culture, I think it is important to recognize the Japanese’s culture of innovation. After all, the Japanese have created so many timeless icons such as Godzilla, Doraemon, Gundam and Dragonball. To develop such a culture is not easy and requires a nation to constantly dream big and think out of the box. In this respect, Japan is way ahead of Singapore.

Just think about it, what icons have Singapore generated over the decades that managed to capture the imagination of the world?