I hear voices of people saying. Early Retirement SG (ERSG) is too extreme.
It's only a couple of bucks of savings.
Like his extreme SGD4 per month handphone bill only saves SGD20 compared to a SIM only plan
Or cable TV only costs an additional SGD20 per month.
Or how his credit card optimization gives him only 3.33% per month on SGD500 spend.
It's only small amounts here and there. It's not going to change my life.
So let's break it down.
I'll take savings as the same as earning for easy calculation.
My handphone bill can be as low as SGD3 but it's typically SGD4 cos the phone credits get used up before 6 months are up.
So typical phone bills for most people = SGD40
If SIM only plan, which not many people know about = SGD20
ERSG = SGD4
Typical savings = SGD36
Cable TV savings = SGD20
Credit card optimization
SGD500 x 3.33% = SGD16 or SGD32 if I add my wife's card as well
SGD80 bonus interest 2.43% for UOB One account if you fulfill certain criteria (SGD160 if incl my wife)
SGD300 x 5% on spending on my secondary card = SGD15
Petrol savings
Some people may not believe my research that you only need to pump RON 95 petrol and still choose to pump RON 98 thinking that it would be better for their vehicle. Based on my testing, RON 98 petrol is 20% more expensive per kilometer. My typical spending on petrol is SGD50/week or SGD200 per month. So savings here is about SGD40.
Even at this point the amount which I have saved is already
36+20+32+160+15+40 = SGD300 per month
That's not too shabby.
Yes it does take a bit of effort to remember to do stuff like monitor credit card spending or remembering to top up the phone card. But with new technology like your phone, you can set alarms to remind you to check stuff or top up stuff or whatever. SGD300 is a quantifiable result as compared to spending this money on "conveniences". ie, the convenience of not monitoring credit card spend or the convenience of not needing to top up my prepaid card, etc.
I once discussed this with my friend with problem spending.
He mentioned that the only way he sees himself paying off his debts is to strike lottery or have some one time off windfall. That's why he doesn't even try to bother to slowly bring down his debt. I tried telling him that these small amounts add up. To save SGD10 you first need to save SGD1, then SGD2, then SGD3, etc.
I'll end this post with this quote.
The journey of a thousand miles begins with one step.
Lao Tze