On... KEN

Steven Goldstein says that trading is something similar to performance sport. Some people get this and some people don't. I sit in the camp that gets it. When I saw his tweet ( Figure below ), I just thought what a coincidence, I've been having s similar thought myself. I'm not a sports person myself but I do know a little about what a sports person go through. I figured that most athlete would spend 20% ( roughly speaking ) of their time acquiring the skill and the remaining 80% executing on it and training to perfect the existing skill. Take a swimmer for example. They probably spend the first few years of their life learning the skills that is required to become an athlete in their field. After you have learned the different strokes, you are not going to learn anything particularly new. The swimmer will then continue to train every day to perfect the existing skills. They continue to train evey day to execute on what they already know. Why do I think this is similar to t...

Cash is Trash. Everyone knows that, even my mom and mom in-law who are not financially educated knows that. Of course 'Financially Educated' is a very subjective term. In this case, I'm talking about people who doesn't know anything about investing and thinks the best thing you can do with your money is to put your money in the bank ( to be fair, some people know about investing but they think its safer to put your money in the bank - Im not talking about those people ). If my mom in-law thinks Cash is Trash, then why did she keep her money in the bank? Isnt that keeping cash? In my opinion - no. I think money in the bank is not cash. This is just my opinion by the way. I've not done a research on the definition of Cash, etc. And my mom in-law and mom doesn't put al their money in the bank. They actually park a good portion of them in the EPF ( Employee Provident Fund ) - a type of retirement fund in Malaysia. I consider ( rightly or wrongly ) cash as money unde...

On a holiday recently, when I visited my parents back in my hometown, my dad asked me if I know what happened to an ex-schoolmate of mine. I shrugged, having not been in touch for more than fifteen years. He told me - "Word is, he is just loafing around". What a way to put it. I held it in as I wanted to tell him. Guess who else is loafing around? Me. His eldest son. Lmao. I guess its a matter of perspective. It could be due to a different generation but young people these days call it FIRE . Financial Independance, Retire Early. Isn't it interesting, that something that is considered an achievement by young people are taken as a negative by someone such as my dad. Now, Im just assuming that my ex-schoolmate is indeed Financially Independent. I have no clue at all about his financial situation or well being. I'm just guessing that he is doing well and because of his success, h doesn't have to work anymore. In other words, he is happily retired. Retirement turned o...

In my early blog , I've estimated AUD 15,000 per annum as a travelling budget. My recent trip to Japan already surpassed that ( AUD 20,000+ ) and that is only our first vacation this year. I might be the odd one out but travelling is really not my thing. As someone who wants to retire early and achieve financial independance; you can see how just one vacation ( family is probably planning another one or two for 2023 ), has already blown our budget out of proportion. There are many reasons why I dislike travelling. First, and most importantly of course is the budget. Travelling is not cheap. There are definitely cheaper options. But when you can afford, the tendency is to push the limit. That's probably human nature. To me, the money spent does not justify the ends at all. Second reason is that I don't really see the value ( value is subjective ). To be honest, I dont really have something to look forward to with regards to travelling. Some people want to travel to taste new...

Investing/Trading is truly the most "open game" that anybody can play. I've long thought about this and recently this podcasts just reminded me of it. Basically, its a career or money making opportunity that almost anyone can pursue. There are certain requirements of course but the barriers to entry is low. I call it a career or business opportunity that does not discriminate. What do I mean by that? Firstly, you do not need any qualifications to pursue investing or trading. In the stock or crypto market, you often see a mixture of background in terms of education. You can find someone who is just a high school leaver up to the level of a phd holder. Usually a lot of jobs these days will require to have some sort of 'paper'. Universities or colleges are becoming more of a business in providing this 'paper'. If you can't afford to attend a university, Im afraid you will be priced out of most job markets. Not the stock or crypto market though.  If you t...

2023 marks the beginning of the sixth year of my investing. 2022 was a catastrophic year for me. It started awful and continues to dump towards the end of the year. The environment was tough, with many hedge funds facing poor returns. ROI for my overall portfolio is 1.5% ( ROI since inception ). For the latest Portfolio Updates, see Portfolio Update .  There is no big changes to my investing or trading in 2022. Perhaps my planning/design has come to an end and thus after 5 years of investing, I am in the execution phase. No doubt I will make minor changes from time to time but I believe the core of the strategy is already in place. The best performer in my portfolio so far is PLS ( +82% ROI since inception ). That is not bad considering we're in a bear market. PLS is a lithium company and although Tesla has pulled back a lot from its all time high, the green energy revolution may still be in play. The worst performer in my portfolio is EXL ( -98% ROI since inception ). It has been ...

Monopoly is a great game that I played as a kid, not realizing how close it mirrors the real world that we live in. According to @GuyImprov ( see figure below ), "Imagine playing Monopoly and never buying any assets or investments that generate income. Imagine you just went around collecting $200, giving your money to the rich, and trying to stay out of jail. That is how most people live their lives". That is indeed very true and exactly what 90% of my education entailed. From the start of school to the day I graduate University - I was trained to be a cog in a machine, as they say. The sole purpose of my education was to train me to be a good worker. There were very few topics on Financial Planning. I'm sure there was; but not at any useful level that would leave a mark on my mind. The pathway ususally looks something like this --> Study Hard --> Graduate from University --> Become a Worker --> Work Hard --> Become a Boss --> Retire. Thing like what is ...