Life is a journey 生命是一场修行

Thursday, April 29, 2021

Low Low Low

Photo by Joshua Earle on Unsplash

Dear Readers,

Thank you for coming here!

I just feel low these few days.

Nothing seems interesting enough.

There are a couple of things going on but I cannot really pinpoint the root cause.

Maybe it is just natural. Some chemical is either too high or too low in my body.

Maybe it is the diet, or the weather, or it is nothing at all.

More and More, I realize the higher we go, the more we know, the harder the situation could be.

We could see clearly how those constraints work together to block all the possible paths.

And of course, we have to give it to those people who set those “perfect” constraints.

More often than not, the person trapped is among the important ones of them.

If we are in those situations, we would think the situation is challenging.

It is if you want to break free, for which you need a break-through, which, by definition, is hard, if at all possible.

However, there could be another solution — patience!

Just wait out, for the next opportunity.

It could feel a waste of time and life. But that proves to be the way with the best track record.

And surprisingly, it makes more and more sense as we age, compared to younger people who surpassingly have more time to spend in waiting.

We have the right not to do things we do not want to do.

We have the right not to stretch ourselves to complete tasks to make other people’s lives easier.

We have the right to ask for what we deserve.

We have the right to escalate when treated unfairly.

We have the right to…

We have the right, probably more so than we realize.

We just need to exercise smartly.

It was eye-opening to witness it first-hand and for the first time.

We should take care of ourselves first.

Or think about it this way: nothing is guaranteed even if we give up all those rights.

We can exercise those rights right when we stop wanting things out of reach.

When feeling stressed, get ourselves together.

Take a walk, get a coffee or take a nap.

Clear our heads and know that the sky wont fall.

List what we need to do and organize them: when to do what with whose support. By now, at lease half of the stress is gone.

And then do it.

Refuse distractions: colleagues’ questions, boss’s requests etc etc

Till next time!

Tuesday, April 27, 2021

Monthly Net-Worth Update — Apr 2021 + One Small Little Thing

Dear Readers,

Thank you for coming here!

So 1/3 of 2021 is gone! Time flies!

This update comes one day ahead of schedule,

partly because I found time to update my TNW tracking sheet last night and I got up a bit earlier today to complete the blog,

partly because of the small little thing I would like to recommend with the expiry date on 30th Apr. So I do not want to waste another day.

Photo by Fabian Blank on Unsplash

But the monthly update first.

It is ok-ish!

Net-Worth increase from last month: 15.42K SGD, -0.23KG Gold

It is an “OK” month.

We had our salaries and we recovered a bit from the stock market.

And we had a major insurance bill this month.

All in all, it is an “OK” month.

The increment in terms of Gold is negative, simply because the gold price increased. So I am worth less Gold than last month ;).

Investment: 6.14% annualized return, incl. dividend

It is a pretty good improvement from last month.

E-cigar picks up across the board, which really helped. This industry is really prone to policies.

I have not added positions for a while. And I will start to take a closer look from now on.

The season for annual reports is mostly over and I think the risk of another big drop is very low. It may still fluctuate.

So I tend to throw my limited capital in and wait for the rebound.

Happy investing!

Here comes the small little thing.

(This is not a sponsored post.)

You probably have seen the ads. It has been all over Singapore and it expires on 30th Apr, 3 days from now.

I did it yesterday with an invitation link from a friend.

The opening of account took me a minute with Singpass. I linked with my DBS multiplier account and the deposit of fund (SGD 2700) took another minute.

The whole process was super smooth and intuitive and I have got the Apple share and 30SGD cash coupon.

So if you have not seen the ads for some reason and are interested, I would suggest you to take advantage of it.

For the 2–3 minutes, you get

1 free Apple Share
30 SGD Cash Coupon
90 days commission-free trading
free market data

It is pretty worthwhile.

And the only downside might be one more investing account to maintain.

I will just buy index and leave it there. For now, my major investing account would still be IB.

If you tend to trade more frequently, the commission-free trading is even more valuable.

Again, I would suggest you to take advantage of this. And if you use below link, you and I will both get the 30SGD Cash Coupon.

https://j.moomoo.com/005e3M

Enjoy!

Till next time!

Sunday, April 25, 2021

My Market Transactions — Wk17 2021

Photo by Chris Liverani on Unsplash

Dear Readers,

Thank you for coming here!

Here is another update on the transactions.

Capital injection: None

My schedule finally improved. And I caught up with my sleep during the weekend. It feels good.

I cannot help but noticing that my workload last week was only a fraction of what I could handle a few years back and I felt so loaded.

Maybe I got old. Maybe I just do not believe it any more.

I still did not do any capital injection for the past week, but I plan to do so by mid of May. I do feel the possibility of another significant drop is very low.

Last Friday was the best day for me in a while. Way to go!

Capital outflow: None

Again, this is not the time to sell.

Happy investing!

Till next time!

Thursday, April 22, 2021

You want to win or win the debate? — why “winning the debate” might also matter?

Photo by GR Stocks on Unsplash

Dear readers,

Thank you for coming here!

You might also know the famous phrase: unsuccessful people aim to win the debate while success people aim to win.

It is a great reminder that we should focus on the end goal and avoid wasting too much energy on distractions.

It is also a great reminder that we should sometimes avoid heated debate that does not matter that much but damages relationship, so that we do not create unnecessary obstacles in our path to “win”.

The reminders are important because what they remind us not to do is exactly what our instincts drive us to do.

Focusing too much on “winning the debate” can hurt our chances to “win” in those cases.

However, it is important not to put them against each other: “losing the debate” or “avoid the debate” is not necessary to “win”.

On the contrary, “wining the debate” is typically important to “win”.

1. Cognitive coordination

To “win”, Cognitive coordination is important.

It is human nature to feel bad and struggling to do something against our belief.

And everyone wants to feel good.

“Winning the debate” is a great way to achieve cognitive coordination, and therefore, we feel good, motivated and energized to push forward our agenda.

2. Executive presence

“Winning the debate” shows we care about what we do and that is why we invest efforts in the debate.

The attitude of “care” automatically increases our executive presence.

And chances are that something good will come out of the debate.

3. People Influence

The fact of “winning the debate” will win over people who care less because that shows power.

The passion and capabilities we show in the process of “winning the debate” will win over people who share the same passion and have similar mindset.

Consequently, we have more resources to advance our course.

Therefore, “wining the debate” is, more often than not, important to “win”.

Summary

Some statements are so well said that we are convinced at the first sight.

However, it is important to think one level deeper to explore the right circumstances they should be applied to.

About “Winning” and “Winning the debate”, it is really about focusing on our priorities.

If our priority is to “win”, fight hard and “win the debate” if it helps us to “win”. Otherwise, give up “winning the debate” and re-direct our attention to other activities that can.

The statement really warns us against “winning the debate” for the sake of “winning the debate”. And it is so convincing simply because we tend to fall into that trap so often, no matter which life stage we are in.

However, it would be total misunderstanding and stupid to completely avoid “winning the debate” in order to increase the chances to “win”.

Till next time!

Tuesday, April 20, 2021

160Hours — What I gained from the Novel

Photo by Gülfer ERGİN on Unsplash

Dear readers,

Thank you for coming here!

I finished the long Chinese novel at 3:17am today, with ~160 hours of reading time.

It is a really good novel. (I would say it is one of the best I have read, but I have read very limited number of novels. So I will settle with “very good”)

Having no time for a comprehensive review and just by closing my eyes, I could gather that I had gained in below 4 areas.

Mindset
People interactions
Management
New knowledge

Allow me to briefly elaborate.

Mindset

Capabilities are the basis and pre-requisite for everything
Devil exists in the details. People who remain elegant after a long day of hard work says many things.
There are no fairy tails. People’s behaviors are subject to many constraints and they are shaped by those constraints themselves.
Taking initiatives always matters. Being lazy and passive ruins the most talent people.
There is no shortcut.
Bottom-line is a must, no matter under what circumstances.
One’s potential can be astonishing if one really really wants to accomplish something, very often with consequences later on.
Focusing too much on one’s own benefits can override all smartness and diligence and prevent him/her from achieving anything significant.
For most people, they have not made the mistakes only because they have not been exposed to high enough pressure.
What is shame? There is no need to look it up in the dictionary. You know it when you experience it.
Sufferance and endurance is not shame, but a skill.
There are so many causes and effects through one’s life. The chances of identifying the root cause is low, if possible at all.
Everyone has their own fate after all.

People interactions

Novels can be more real than biography.

They bring us into the scene of the interactions, including what they say and do and how they think, and break them down for us to see and understand.

So that we know when we are in similar situations.

And we can reflect on ourselves if we have been in similar situations.

Novels are a great way to learn about people.

Photo by Maarten van den Heuvel on Unsplash

Management

Right attitude and solid actions, with a kind heart.
Never let your team stay idle. That is the start of all distractions.
Being passive or giving up is almost never a good strategy in competitions. No leverage = no respect/power/benefits.
Build leverages and do not be afraid to use it, smartly.

New knowledge

We can learn real knowledge and see them being applied in novels. Of course, expect only entry level.

In this one, I have learned in below areas which are new to me:

Ways to gather capital
Difficulties to run a factory
Incredible operations in the area of financing and investing

Till next time!

Sunday, April 18, 2021

My Market Transactions — Wk16 2021

Photo by Chris Liverani on Unsplash

Dear Readers,

Thank you for coming here!

Here is another update on the transactions.

Capital injection: None

Busy schedule continues. I think the coming week will not be too relaxing either.

For the market, I maybe looked at it twice in the past whole week and did not see any buying opportunities.

I am still in the RED.

And STI has been doing pretty well. Haha, I pretty much sold my STI at the lowest point and bought in other stocks at the highest point.

Almost perfect timing to drag myself in the shit…

Capital outflow: None

Again, this is not the time to sell.

Happy investing!

Till next time!

Thursday, April 15, 2021

How to be a good employee (10 times the salary in 10 years) — Part 6: Always watch out for your ROI

Dear Readers,

Thank you for coming here!

Welcome to another episode of the “Good Employee” series.

In this Episode 6, I would like to talk about our value as an employee.

It all essentially comes down to our ROI — what the employers are investing on us and what we bring to the employers in return.

I grow up watching KongFu movies and I always admire the Swordsmen and the Generals who make all those awesome moves on the back of their horses.

I have always dreamt of riding a fast horse and tour around, better even with a bow and some arrows.

Therefore, when I went to big farms in New Zealand and grassland in Mongolia, I always looked for horses.

To my surprise, horses were rare.

When I asked, the answer was “Horses are not worth it. They eat a lot but produce almost nothing. They can be used as transport but cars and trucks are better.”

The real world is built upon practical terms.

Anything or anyone that does not produce enough value becomes luxury.

And luxury, like the horses, is kept due to passion, not necessity.

This is especially true in commercial space.

You could build a business by satisfying the passion of your customers. But keeping someone or something because of passion in the process is quite unlikely.

Even Nonprofit or Charity organizations have requirements for their members.

Therefore, let it be clear: employees will be got rid of sooner or later if they do not produce enough value.

As an employee, nothing is more dangerous than becoming luxury.

Ok! Now that is clear, let’s talk about how to increase our ROI.

There are only two ways:

Reduce the investment on us from the employers
Increase our value add to the employers.

There are cases where people refuse promotions and pay rises to avoid more responsibilities and at the same time keep their job.

However, this is not that common. And I personally do not recommend this approach unless you have special conditions or really love the job you do now (with back-up plans).

I just do not feel secure if I keep doing the same thing with no learnings. Someone younger or even AI could replace me the next day.

Therefore, I would count on #2: Increase our value add to the employers.

Value comes in many different forms, e.g. delivering good work, gaining trusts from your superior, providing specially resources or access to your superior, or even satisfying the personal preference or hobbies of your superior.

To add more value, one thing is certainly required: put in your efforts, thoughts, and attention. We cannot expect to be very relaxed and delivering enough value at the same time.

After adding enough value, chances are promotion or pay raises wont come naturally.

You most likely need to show you want it and ask for it.

And there are two approaches: Passively or Actively.

Passively, we could focus on adding value, open everything up and hope for or ask nicely for what we deserve, which gives the decision power to others.

Actively, we could focus on adding value, and at the same time think of the next steps: maybe we hide a bit of the details to increase our irreplaceability, and ask actively for what we deserve, which gives us leverage.

Based on my experience, I have failed miserably on the first approach and I have seen many successes with the second approach.

Going forward, I will try the latter, even though the latter does require more thoughts and attention. We need to worry about many more things.

But remember, no matter which approach you take, the pre-requisite is enough value add.

Photo by Tingey Injury Law Firm on Unsplash

What if you keep seeing people with less value getting more than you do?

That feels like shit. I know and I have been there.

Again, look at the ROI, but from our perspective.

Is what we get at least matching what we put in? Do we have better options?

The thing we should not do is dwelling on the thoughts “This is not fair”.

Nothing and no one is fair in this world. Dwelling on that thought will kill all our passion, motivation and energy.

And it is pointless.

If you are not getting promoted, there must be causes. Even if the causes are not fair or can only be hidden under the table, they exist and you need to deal with them.

And it is not even true.

As mentioned, value comes in many forms. They might be delivering values that we do not see or cannot even imagine.

So focus on whether it is worthwhile for us, rather than whether it is fair to us.

Summary

If we, as employees, do not add enough value compared to our title or pay, we become luxuries in commercial space. And nothing is more dangerous than that.

Focus on adding more value by putting in more efforts, thoughts and attention, instead of seeking for less pay or lower title. It is probably not up to us.

Once we add enough value, we can leverage it actively or passively to get what we deserve.

In the cases where we keep seeing people with seemingly less value getting more, focus on whether it is worthwhile for us, rather than whether it is fair to us.

Till next time!