Simple Budget, Simple Life

Other than sharing about my financial journey, at the end of it, what I want is to have a healthy body and mind to enjoy my fruits of labour. I'm not just financially conscious, but health conscious as well. I used to not care about what I eat since I wasn't fat. But, I would always have bad stomachaches and cramps. Furthermore, I don't exercise. After a few painful episodes, and after visiting the TCMs, I knew I had to do something to improve my health. One of my New Year Resolutions is to eat better. I am trying to cut down on my fast food intake, and raw food such as salad and sashimi. People tout salads as a healthy choice, and I wont' disagree depending on what sauces you add, but I don't think my body suits cold food like salad and sashimi. I still indulge in my hawker food such as hokkien mee, char kway teow, but usually eat less oily food such as fish porridge, fish soup bee hoon, ban mian etc. I have also cut down on my cold drinks intake as my body con...

I'm not actively looking for a job. So when I received a call for an interview, I was puzzled. Turns out, I applied for this position months ago. I'm in my first job and feels comfortable with what I have now. The first 2 years were tough. High turnover led me to covering the roles of colleagues until we got people in, trained new colleagues who are much older and "experienced" plus expensive, feeling stressed out from the deadlines and non-existent SOPs, feeling angry because of messy instructions from different bosses who sometimes can't make up their minds, knowing that I'm not paid as well as others, having crappy colleagues who create politics, gossips and do not cooperate and the list goes on. There were times when I felt like giving up. But I knew I can't because, as a fresh grad, there's not much places for me to go. I wouldn't hire people who jumps around within 1-2 years, much less do it myself. And so, I shouldered on. As I got th...

Previously, I talked about my upgrade of my NTUC Enhanced Incomeshield Plan from Advantage to Preferred , because I wanted to purchase the best plan possible when I'm still healthy (and could afford the not-so-hefty-yet premiums).  If you purchased The Sunday Times (3 Apr edition), you can take a look at the article on the comparisons of the various IPs from the major insurance companies. A good read to tell you that it is best to purchase "as-charged" plans.  Anyway, the cause of this post is to complain . I went down to the Income branch on 3 Mar for my plan upgrade and was told that I'd receive my documents within 3 weeks and I'll have to make payment for it. It's been 1 month and I've yet to receive my document. Was told it is still in processing stage. Huh? Why did it take so long? I'm feeling anxious cause my Advantage plan was supposed to end on 31 Mar 2016. Did a check on the Income portal which showed that my plan is still "i...

Time flies. It's April tomorrow. I've been getting a little lazy with my budget tracking. Used to key in my purchases immediately into my phone but am now more laid back by keying in only at the end of the day or days later. Thinking back about what was most memorable in March were the following: Exercised on 27 Mar by hiking at Mount Faber BUT  not only did I not sign-up for the 2x bonus points for my steps tracker , my tracker died on me during 3/4 of my trek! Hopes to continue such long walks with my partner on a monthly basis Having a pleasant shock when I knew of my bonus :O. Was expecting a good grade, but not such a good grade. I know such luck might not come again, but 曾经拥有，好过没有。So glad to be rewarded well, although my basic pay is not very competitive la.  Visited Gardens by the Bay for the Sakuras but I'm so disappointed. It was Good Friday and the place was so packed. Not only that, the flowers seem rea...

In my previous post, I explained why there is a need to buy the best hospitalisation plan . Note: that is if you can afford the premiums. Purchasing a hospitalisation plan is to protect your wealth from hefty medical charges but the key is to protect your health. I'm always heartened to see the Government spending all efforts to encourage citizens to eat well, exercise, retire well etc. I came across the Screen for Life website , which is really wonderful in guiding you the type of health screenings and immunisation you need to take at your age. Have you also attempt to walk 10,000 steps a day? On a long day, I will hit 20,000 steps. Usually, on a work day, it's 8-9k. At work, I try to walk about as much as I can, doing simple things like filling up my cup or taking toilet breaks. My bf has also set an Exercise Day on 27 March, so that we can take part in StepsChallenge.sg Bonus Points Day ! Got their free steps tracker watch months ago as well, just not wearing it ...

Most of us think that saving for our retirement can wait. For the young ones (like me :P), we're busy saving up for our upcoming BTOs, wedding, children etc. With these impending life stages, should I plan for my retirement now? At age 25? To help me answer my question, I'll be using the  DBS Retirement Planner  which I chanced upon when doing ibanking and answer the following questions: 1. When would I want to retire?  - Honestly, IDK. The thought of working for another 40 years, till 65, make me quiver. Yet, the reality is that, without income, my family and I would find it hard to survive in this world. Also, I'm not entrepreneurial and could imagine myself in my 9-5 office job foreverrrrr....So, 65 shall be the age I envision myself to retire! 2. What is my desired monthly income during retirement @ 65? - As a guide, the desired monthly income could be 70% of my current salary. As I will not be revealing my salary openly, I've inputted an e...

You must be thinking why a lady in her 20s is telling you this. Simply because, this young lady has just received her medical report and there are some issues that need medical advice. Your Health is Your Most Important Asset. It's not too late when you're healthy. I purchased the NTUC Enhanced Incomeshield plan since I started working. I knew I needed some wealth protection because I've always been a weak kid. I also happened to know that my parents did not purchase any insurance plans for us because "Daddy has no money for those". Honestly, I was dumbfounded. I was angry and I cried. I felt that my parents didn't love us enough. Which parent does not purchase insurances for their kids? I always thought we were covered. "Why didn't he purchase hospitalisation plans for us!?" I exclaimed. "What if something happened to us and we had no money to treat?!" My mum probably thought I was really senseless and selfish to say ...