What are you doing today?

Ah that dreaded question a retiree, especially a newly minted young one gets asked every now and then, usually by those still in the rat race. 

Now, I have started to not dread these, or read too much into the meaning and intent.

Why? Because I know the person asking cannot understand what it feels like to be in my situation. Sometimes, people cannot believe I can live off my investments at this age. They think I am lying and just saying something to save my own face or ego. And for those who actually believe, they still have other insecurities about my situation, thinking something is wrong. LOL

So, no point being upset or defensive. It's a matter of time these same people will retire and then they will understand. Hopefully not when they are too old and frail lol.

So what's my answer then?

Instead of stressing myself to think about what to say or think hard about what I actually already planned to do today, I will simply answer "I am going to enjoy life today"

That's the best and quick answer that I can just roll it off my tongue anytime and not be stressed. 

I am not lying at all.

I am really going to enjoy my life today and every other todays. 

Why?

Because whatever I plan to do, it's my choice and my freedom. I don't have to answer anyone, I don't have to tell anyone the details of each item I plan to do today. Maybe I will tell someone if that person is really keen, but TBH, whoever that ask the original question, aren't keen in the details of what I plan to do today. They just want to find out if I will be unsure, lost or clueless, so they can tie back to their theory about me in their mind. They are not keen to know me, but I hope over time some will as they grow out of this. 

Whatever I plan to do today, it may happen, or I may change my mind. I don't report to a boss, I don't have a hard dateline to complete a task (unless it's a bill I have to pay lol), so I can always flip to other things that appear to be more enjoyable as life. So logically it doesn't make sense for me to explain what exactly I intend to do today in general unless you are going to join me. hehehe

Don't get me wrong, I am not about to live aimlessly and die young due to brain damage. 

I have my routines everyday, and I stick to them. Eat well, prepare a solid breakfast, keep things in house tidy, fix broken things, exercise a lot, take a nap when sleepy, watch my investments. Read news, read books, write my journal here. That's my current routine and it's been working fine. Then there will be side things or passion projects, that can be a trip planning, researching on new pair of shoes, checking out renovation ideas for my next apartment etc.

See? I am enjoying life today. that's my answer. 

I hope you enjoy yours too

healthier SG screening

I love my govt. For folks my age, we get free screening for blood and colon cancer.

So I happily walked into my fav CHAS clinic, gave them some of my blood and my shit, and waited for a week for results.

So how's the result?

Well, blood tests showed I am not diabetic, so yeah!

But it showed my LDL is slightly elevated, but not enough to warrant any treatment or medication. Though I will want to measure it again in 3 months' time to check on its trajectory. 

I have recently increased my cardio workouts, mainly going for 3km jogs almost daily. I think it will help in LDL control and also help cut down the visceral fat that is around my tummy. Doc said I need to reach heart rate of 145bpm for my age range in order to start burning those fats. My jogs I hit 140 or so, so it's good. I can run a little faster in coming months as I get used to the tempo. 

Shit test? that's clear as well, Heng ah!

thoughts on past accomplishments in career after retirement

 I am not an old retiree, so memories of what I did during my working years are still kind of vivid.  That includes relationships with colleagues and major accomplishments. These are in the past, though I do want to maintain relationships with some ex colleagues as I treat them as friends now.

Specifically, I am going to talk about accomplishments. Over my 25 years of career life, I had a number of moments where I felt I did something that really impressed myself and others. I clearly remember these. They bring back good feelings, reminding myself how my hardwork and determination and little smarts paid off. These are things which I am proud of, even if they may not always directly or indirectly lead to promotions or more money like bonuses. In fact, it was the compliments and praises from respected colleagues that gave me the best feeling. 

Let me state a few key ones:

1. I took on a very hard task to design and execute a very risky and complex migration. I literally did it all by myself in terms of the design, testing and planning the execution, and of course the actual migration required the rest of my team mates to chip in. But I knew I was the lead, I was the one who made it possible. The migration was a success. Engineers around me were amazed by what I did. I didn't get any praises from higher management since its just a migration, but god knows how wrong it could had gone, or how adverse an impact it would had should we decide not to do it and wait. Apparently this achievement was noted by even people I didn't expect to know. Years after I left the said company where this migration took place, I met some ex colleagues who were based in India. One of them reminded me about that project and how I was the famous engineer who did this amazing migration which subsequently allowed the system to continue to scale to its current state. Apparently, my name was mentioned in some presentation on how the system had evolved over time! Well, I wouldn't had know it since I already left. But thanks to this chance encounter with this ex colleague, I now know and will forever remember that what I thought was really good work is really good work. That felt really good. 

2. When I first joined one of my last companies as a senior engineer, I was totally a stranger to the team, except for the director who referred me to the job. I worked my ass off for 3-4 months to establish myself as a credible engineer who can add value. After about 3-4 months, we had an off site where I was tasked to present some topics. It was my first presentation to such a large group and I was nervous. But fortunately they were all kind to me and I think I did well. But what really stood out for me until today, was what happened during one of the tea breaks. The said director walked to me to say hi, ask me about my long flight, and then he said " I am so glad you are here with us. You made a difference". OMG, those words I remember for life. My hard work in last 3-4 months got noticed. That really gave me the confidence to continue in my role which I did and did very well. 

Now that I am retired, these things will become loving memories and perhaps stories I can share if anyone wants to listen. But mostly, they are a reminder of what I did before, what I contributed, how I guided and trained other engineers that made a difference. Alas, these stories are set in stone, they are in the past, and they will definitely get old.

I wonder if I will still think about them in 10 years time from now. hehehe

Still, I must remember, these are in the past, I have plenty of new accomplishments ahead, not in the career or field I was in before, but in other aspects of my life. Things like a healthy and strong body to age into, loving relationships with my wife and kids, and sincere friendships with people I love.  And others that I may not have imagine yet. 

Do I miss my old work? yes I do, I can't lie. But I think that's expected as this early stage of retirement. And naturally it will fade over time, unless I intentionally cling on to it. I should not. 

Routine

 It’s funny. I still think of Monday as Monday 

Maybe that’s because my wife is still working a regular job and my kids are attending school. 

That helps in giving me some anchor in routine. Else I’ll be floating blissfully in the clouds directionless as atoms

This gives me opportunity and time to bring up my own routines, before wife’s retirement and then kids going off school and becoming working adults and moved out.

Not bad 

A life of abundance mindset

 That’s hard. When I was young, my parents weren’t rich (and still so) but we were not fuck poor. 

However, I definitely grew up as a kid in an environment that tells me that everything is scarce. My siblings and I seldom have new toys. We have hand me downs, and gifts from our “richer” relatives. We cherished every single toy we have in our possession. We took good care of them and played with them for many many years. 

We never worry about food, but now that I looked back, we certainly didn’t have a protein rich diet vs what my kids have now. It’s a lot of rice, bread, noodles. Even adding an additional egg is rare. I grew up thinking it’s abnormal to just eat a meal which composes of more than 20% meat by volume. 

I never had new dictionaries, just old and tattered ones that our older cousins passed to us, probably because they would simply buy a new one if the current one is too torn and battered.

I seldom have new clothes, except when it’s CNY. 

I still fondly recall how excited I was when my mother agreed to let me buy jeans and polo tee from Giordano, which is my first introduction to what a “logo” on a piece of clothing meant. It meant pride, trendy, and more importantly, I am not that poor. That’s how shallow I was. But it’s ok. I was like a frog inside a well, my vision was severely limited by my circumstances, combined with my character of being introverted and afraid to ask.

Even though I have considerable resources now, even when retired, my burnt in mindset never really departed. The mindset of scarcity, fear of future losses, fear of taking on risks. Frankly, it kind of served me well in my career as an engineer/architect of infrastructure; making magic out of limited resources, being very creative, ensuring risks are mitigated well in advance etc. 

but now that I am retired, I’m wondering if I should retire this mindset for the better good for myself. I feel it makes me worry for nothing going forward. I am not going to take humongous risks of course, but I don’t want to thread water either. I have less years ahead than what had been lived, and it’s a pity to continue to be like this. 

So, perhaps it’s time to acknowledge what I have and don’t continue to live with a scarcity mindset. I should aim for a better mindset that suits my current stage of life…a mindset of abundance.

No, it’s not just about dollars and cents, though I do think I will do fine in that aspect. 

It’s about the abundance of time, energy, opportunities, to live a good life. To live a loved life. To live an experienced life. Some of these will definitely cost money, but I think a large part of it simply requires effort on my part. 

Eg, if I have physical impairments, besides just having the money to pay for medical services to fix them, it also requires me to intentionally go get treatment and follow through whatever comes to aid my recovery. And that includes eating well, having a positive mindset generally, and keeping my physical body in tip top condition 

It will take effort to outlive my scarcity based upbringing. My old mother, today still carries such mindset to living, and her constant nags and unsolicited advices just continue to pigeon hole me into that mindset even though I am already considered an old fart. 

I loved my mum to bit and will always be there for her, so she can continue to do what she does and I will stay respectful but not receptive to such mindset. I am my own person, I thank her for her parenting efforts but I am no longer required to listen to her life advice as those are outdated and not applicable to me today. She won’t understand the circumstances I have now vs what she went through. A life of abundance is what I face actually, while she didn’t unfortunately. But for sure she won’t have to worry about her material needs going forward as long as I am around (and she will also get a decent sum to live on should something untoward happen to me).

So, this is to myself: break those chains, keep the relationship, but break the chains and be yourself and own your own life. Mindset change is due and very due. Onwards to a happy and abundant life. I have this wonderful chance that most humans alive right now on earth won’t. And I will not waste it. I will use it fully so I don’t let down those who won’t have that chance. 

Workaholic

When I was young in my career before 40, I could be considered a workaholic. I can work more than 12 hours a day, and sometimes even overnight and on weekends. That was how driven I was to learn and learn and contribute and gain visibility. 

But once I had my second kid, I changed, mainly also due to circumstances as taking care of a family requires a lot of my time since we don’t have helper. 

But I was glad of this change. It was permanent. It made me worked hard but smart, and gave me a North Star which is family and self care vs running like a blind chicken. 

Being exposed to the ruthlessness that of reorganizations and layoffs since my early 30s also made my much more self aware of what the workplace should mean in my life.

Workaholics always think they are needed and the team they are in is useless. Therefore they tend to overwork, taking on things and tasks from others as they believe they can do it faster and better than their team mates. It also comes from a lack of faith and trust, plus an unwillingness to tolerate mistakes made by others. If you try to tell them that they need to work smart, they won’t listen. The answer is always “but the others don’t know how to do this!”. It is a very serious issue to me. It meant they will work themselves to death, not just their physical and mental health, but also their relationships with their loved ones, their spouse and their children. 

Remember, if you fall dead in office, within a few days, they will start interviewing to find your replacement and life goes on for everyone in the office, including those “lousy incompetent” colleagues that you used to not trust to do the “important” things. These people will simply take over what you would be doing if you were still alive. And guess what? Life goes on and the company won’t collapse. It’s the same if you were laid off. The work will just be handed over to those not laid off. The company won’t close down. 

This meant, you are not that indispensable. It’s a fact. The company don’t have single point of failure especially a large MNC. No one is so important.

So while you are still alive and working, don’t take on everything. Learn to let others do their work, learn to accept and deal with mistakes they make, and learn to guide them. If not you will not only end up miserable but your colleagues will also not be able to grow, and worse, they will start resenting you behind your back, since they will also be frustrated about the lack of faith and trust you showed them. And that’s a vicious cycle… you have more and more work on your plate since everyone don’t want to take it from you. 

So, workaholics, mend your ways before it’s too late. 

Learn to age gracefully and pivot to use your experience to guide and work smart. 

You have a family at home. They are the ones who will cry for you. They are last persons your eyes will see before closing for good. You won’t be thinking about any work not done well before your heave last breath.

US tech stocks

 Just took stock this month....

damn, my US holdings dropped by 15% from May to June. WTF

I don't need to cash out so I can hold, but this will still have some effect on my mood. 

But alas, I need to get used to this. 

The 5Cs of Singaporean Dream revisited

Ah, the famous 5Cs that Singaporeans dream or used to dream of. 

Condo, Car, Credit Card, Country Club, Cash

Uncle got all except country club, I failed. 

Or did I?

Now, these 5Cs are really outdated as a package. 

Who the hell still yearn for country club memberships, except for the very old people (rich ones) and maybe their offsprings? It's like living in a bubble. Pui!

And credit card? That's a dream? Chey. Almost anyone can get a credit card or a just-as-convenient debit card these days. Heck, even Uncle's teenage kids have debit cards from Visa/Master, physical cards and virtual ones in their phones. Else how they pay for things? It's mostly cashless these days. So, I would say, this C is totally obsolete. It has become a basic daily convenience lol. Unless your dream is to have a credit card where you literally need that credit to spend more than what you have in your bank accounts. That's not a dream bro, it's a nightmare that will appear later in life. 

Condo....hmmm...TBH a much high percentage of people in SG live in Condos these days compared to 20 years ago. I think it's about 25% now? So, even 1 in 4 households living a condo. It's not majority, but it's not a small percentage either. But ok lah, I'll let this one stay as an aspiration, since I believe many who used to live in HDBs or are still living will always aspire to a condo lifestyle. But seriously, it should be a dream in that the higher potential capital appreciation of a condo will lead to  financial security, and not just chasing a silly lifestyle that is mostly performative. 

Car is definitely a dream, especially given the ridiculous COE prices these days lol. Dream on everyone who wants a set of wheels. After my current car COE expires in 6-7 years' time, I will be unlikely to afford a replacement. COE will be I guess....$200k lol.

Cash...oh yeah, I think this C can remain forever.

So, Uncle prefer these new Cs package:

Cashflow

Condo

Car

CPF

Yeah, the new 4Cs hehehe

why CPF? 

Oh man, you living under a rock is it? 

CPF guaranteed interests, and the amazing CPF Life, especially if you can top up to ERS, damn good deal. It forms a solid retirement baseline on top of which you layer other financial earnings like investments, dividends, property etc.

Cashflow vs Cash. It's way more important to have good cashflow vs a static amount of cash. Have both lah, but cashflow is king. 

Death by thousand cuts

 Slowly but surely, it will succeed 

How to defend?

Sigh

Advice to my younger self starting work

 I wish an adult who has been through working and started retiring successfully was there to give me wisdom when I first started working. This is what I would tell my younger self when I first started working:

- work is a means to a good life, not the life itself

- prepare for a fix term of work and a target retirement age. Not a target retirement sum as that sum will keep moving. Work backwards from the target age

- don’t be tempted for quick gains and don’t gamble 

- buy insurance but don’t over buy. Set a budget

- open trading accounts and CDP account

- open a savings account in a different bank than your account where salary goes in. This is your real savings account. Set a percentage of pay you want to save every time your salary comes in. Start small is ok, say 10%, and stick to it. Transfer that 10% out immediately to the real savings account and then budget all your spending based on what’s left of your salary. If it’s too tight, find out why and what’s bleeding you. If still cannot then lower the savings to 5%. 

- focus on improving your craft at work so you maximise your income growth. This is your main source of income and you want to max it out so your savings grow and you can also start to enjoy life as you grow as a person. Spend and travel, but don’t indulge in recurring luxuries. Focus on value and quality and experiences, don’t be a spendthrift but don’t be a miser. 

- learn how to invest in stocks, SSB/ T bills. Try a little money to experience it. Only by taking action will the muscle develop. The best time to start is “now”. Use the money in savings account to invest. 

- keep a exercise routine, you will thank yourself later

- always keep up with dental appointments 

- always do health screening

- don’t touch CPF. If you are confident of growing you cash to be enough for down payment of a home, then try to top up your CPF special account. This 4% compounding will do wonders for your retirement 

- open SRS account and put $1 inside. This locks in the SRS draw out age. As your income grows, your income tax rate goes up and you will ultimately use SRS contributions as a way to reduce income tax payable. 

- build a buffer of 3-6 months of salary in savings

- buy the largest property ( number of rooms and size) you can afford in SG. It will only appreciate so you want the big ones as early as you can in case you have many kids. It’s always possible to sell for profit and buy smaller later, but no the other way around. Go for BTO flats as it’s a lottery.