Hi
Another day, another blog post
So what do I do with my 'more savings'?
Basically, I do these few things:
(a) SRS - Put my money into Supplementary Retirement Scheme (SRS) account on a yearly basis
(b) CPF SA - Top up my Special Account (SA) to the max amount allowable;
(c) CPF OA - Do my housing refunds
(d) CPF RA - Top up my parents' Retirement Account (RA)
(e) Passive investing - Setup a passive investment account with SYFE and Stash away
Hi there
Retirement is something that no one can get out off, unless you intend to work till the day you drop dead. Even then, you may want to work (as in being in someone’s employment) but will any company or any one wants to hire you? That’s the million dollar question, right?
When you can’t find any employment, you will need money to live right?
Hence, starting to save at as young a age as possible, should be the goal for you out there. Fathers - please teach your children that.
In my own simple term, savings is defined as
Income - Expenditure = Savings
Now here is the tricky part. How will you define ‘expenditure’?
When I look at this ‘expenditure’ - I can’t help but think back at my life for the last 30 years and realise some follies I have committed along the way when I was much younger. Retirement was not something I think of at all. No, not at that point was I was 24 years old. No one taught me anything then. Internet was at its infancy, and searching and sharing of information wasn’t so easy.
I was earning my pay and was keen to spend to reward myself and keep up with the Tans and Lims, etc. However, I did not really go overboard in my spending though. I did not take credit loans and wasn’t in debt and I kept within budget.
Nonetheless, I did spend.
(A) Purchase branded items - for e.g. a Prada briefcase that costs $2K
(B) Many watches and bags and shoes = I believed I spend up to $60K on watches and bags and shoes. Some of these items I don’t even use more than 10 times.
(C) Cars - I have on total owned up to 6 cars - imagine the amount of money on these cars that I have spent on
(D) Impulse purchases - like electronic products such as cameras, latest phones, tables (I have 3 of them) etc.
If there’s one lesson I want my children to learn, it will be this - make your expenditure be based on needs rather than wants. For example, I would not buy that Prada briefcase, just a simple quality leather briefcase and I may save up to $1.2K. I would keep my spending budget even smaller.
So if I am to re-write that equation above, it will now look like this:
Income - Expenditure (Needs rather than Wants) = More Savings
This the lesson I want my children to learn.
With ‘more savings’, I am more insulated against the unknown world of ‘employment’ and life
I will share that in my next few posts.
Till the next post.
I am thinking and asking myself - why start this blog?
A few reasons I guess. (I will update this blog post along the way when my thoughts become clearer)
(1) A place for me to share my thoughts with others, especially for the Singapore guys out there who are fathers. Fathers who are working hard and trying to save enough for the family and themselves when they grow old. What are the tips and tricks that I have learned and used that I can share with you all? These tips will be wide-ranging, from saving and investing to travelling to family matters to life musings etc.
*Please note that I cannot advise you, as your need and circumstances are vastly different from mine.
* I have been through the journey, since I am a father of 2 wonderful children. One is 21 years old and the other is 13 years old at this point.
(2) A place for me to get my brain 'juice' active when I retire. Writing does help one's cognitive development.
(3) A legacy for my children when I leave this world eventually.
Till the next blog post.
Things have changed a lot during these past 2 years because of the COVID-19 situation.
Also, I am now at the age of 53 years and am seriously thinking of quitting the daily grind to focus more on time for my own.
Of course, many of us are worried about having enough money to retire comfortable once we stop working. That has always been bugging me. Now the question is, what is enough?
I came across this movement, 1M65 - which basically means having $1 million in your CPF account by age 65. I have also shared this 1M65 movement with my family and friends. At the moment, I am one-third of the way to reach that figure. But the calling of retirement is getting stronger everyday. Maybe it is the unhappiness with work situations now. I hope it will go away soon.
None the less, I have exactly between 2 year (when I reach 55) or up to 7 year (when I reach 60) to call it a day. I guess having that plan will help.
Till the next post.
