I've been using this term cheap a lot in this blog.
Ok so I'd like to make this clear to readers else some folks may say Early Retirement SG is cheapo.
When I say cheap, I mean of good value.
Meaning utility value is larger than price.
It's not to buy or consume purely products of low price. 

Example
I use a XiaoMi phone. It costs around SGD150. This is cheap for the utility I get from it.
As compared to a Samsung phone which might cost SGD500. I'm running the same Android OS on similar hardware.
Cheapo would be maybe getting an old Nokia phone which has no internet. 
You could probably get one at SGD20.

Or when I eat steak.
I will buy ribeye or tenderloin cuts. Which are 2 of the more premium cuts of beef. But I will cook it myself. These cuts are pretty expensive. 
But I compare this to going to a restaurant to eat which may cost SGD30 per person and I do not get these good cuts. 
Alternatively, cheapo would be to get the cheapest cuts of beef which may be tough and hard to swallow.

I use a Philips 40" TV. To me this is good value. It costed me around SGD400. 
As compared to a Samsung 50" TV, I get a similar utility for around half the price.
Cheapo would be to get a 23" Akira TV which I would need to strain to see from my sofa.
Akira TV's are also not as sharp in terms of picture quality.

So just to be clear, when I say cheap in this blog, it typically means the product/service is of better value relative to the alternatives which I know of at that point in time. It does NOT mean to get a poor quality product for an extremely low cost, rather it is to get as high a utility from that purchase for a reasonable price.
Like going for a nice steak at Knolls@Capella. Using the Entertainer App, I can get a nice cut of tenderloin with a nice slice of foie gras for SGD36 for the both of us. This is not cheap per se. But rather of good value for a nice steak at a restaurant.



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Highly related to my previous post on humans being able to get used to anything.

I don't really know how this started. 
I remember when I was 13-14 years old. 
I was trading in Magic the Gathering. This is a trading card game very popular during that time.
At this time, I had desire. I wanted more. I took allowance advances to buy more cards. I was trying to get better cards to build my deck. The craze went off when I went into Junior College (17 years old) and the school was further than the place where I used to do my trading. 
I started playing cos everyone was playing. It was the in thing to do. It was cool. It provided a social circle and it was fun. It was also fun when I won matches.

The cards came in common, uncommon or rares.
The useful  rare cards would cost a lot. Useless rare cards won't be worth much.
Useful uncommon cards would also cost quite a bit. Unless uncommon cards won't be worth very much.
Useful common cards would be worth maybe SGD0.50-SGD1. Useless common cards are pretty much worthless.

I'm not sure how it started but there came a phase when I stopped using rare cards to play. I would collect rare cards when I got them and keep them in good condition in my folder for resale. I would then build decks using common or uncommon cards. I didn't even use useful uncommon cards as those could be sold for quite good amounts. The thing was, I could still win using these decks. It's probably not good enough for tournaments (which I don't attend), but it was good enough for casual play. I would win some, lose some, and have a lot of fun along the way. I was using useless uncommon cards in innovative combinations with common cards to build good fun decks. This was all the more fun when I could win against players who had spent a lot of money building their decks. 

This was when I realized that I could play the game differently from everyone. That a little bit of thinking or innovation would allow me to be as good as an average person and still be utilizing less resources. 

Fast forward to now.
​I now live a very enriching life. 
I have a house, car, furniture, etc. 
Utility wise, I am able to live the same or even better than others who have spent more to get the same stuff.
I always look at things from a utility point of view.
Does this product perform the deed which I buy it for? Can I get something cheaper which performs the same function at a lower cost? 
I have a phone. It tells me the time. I don't need a Rolex.
I have a car. It gets me from place to place. I don't need a BMW.
I would not have a car if my wife was not working in an inaccessible area.
I have a Philips 40" TV. I don't need a Samsung 50" TV. Seriously, the cost is double but the utility is not double. I don't get double the pleasure using a 50" TV.

Somewhere in between playing card games and now, I learnt that I didn't need very much. You can always get something for good value. To provide the same utility and enrich your life at a lower cost. This resulted in me having very little wants in life. Almost no material desire. I still like my car. It's expensive but it provides a different utility. But I'm willing to not own it if my wife changes job. But when I think about watches, or branded accessories, or the latest gadgets, I feel nothing for them. Sure if someone wants to give me a free Rolex, I'm happy to take it. But personally, I have no real interest to buy anything, as long as what I have currently still fulfills it's purpose. 

There was once a few years back, I bought a memory foam pillow. It was SGD20.
My existing cotton pillow was losing volume and I was having neck pain after sleeping. I thought that I needed additional support so I looked around and decided to get this memory foam pillow. The experience was shocking. This was essentially a want. I could just buy a new cotton pillow which was more fluffy. Anyway, after I paid for it, I felt this swell of emotion. Basically, I had almost never given in to my wants. And this time I bought something which had a higher price than the utility value which I assigned to it. I was almost about to tear up. It was a strange feeling.

Anyways, besides my car, my other sin is, relatively expensive food. Typically SGD30 per pax on weekends, with good value. Anything more expensive and I wouldn't feel happy eating as I would experience the emotional cost of overspending. Unless it's some special occasion such as birthdays and such. But even so, I would look for good value and the cost should be around SGD70 per pax. 

What I use
Car - COE car. Expense is SGD1200 per month including depreciation, parking, insurance, everything.
Phone - hand me down XiaoMi phone from my wife, camera lens cracked. It serves its purpose for Whatsapp, calls, Facebook, intenet.
Running shoes - SAF running shoes
TV - 40" Philips TV
Table - SGD49 IKEA table
Home clothes - SAF PT kit
Working clothes - G2000
Going out clothes - whatever T-shirts people bought for me for gifts
Belt - SGD20 belt using friction to hold into place. No holes. I find the hole type of belts spoil easily as the pin will typically tear the holes and ruin the leather.
Working shoes - SGD20 leather shoes, typically lasts 6 months if worn daily. The place that sells at Rochor center this has closed down. I have yet to need to buy a replacement.

I don't even know what else there is to list down. Cos if I don't have something I can't compare against what other people use. And really, I don't have much. 
But I'm happy. Cos I create my own happiness. Not from the stuff which I have or how others view me, but rather by being happy with what ever I already have.

Having low desires also add to my happiness as I don't have the feeling of want and disappointment when I don't have it. As long as the utility of the item I have already serves its purpose, I don't feel the need to upgrade to the latest or better product.

That being said, having desires might not be a bad thing. Desires may help to drive a person to work harder and earn more to obtain the stuff he wants. So it can also be used as a driving force. 
But just a point to note, what's next? Typically, the person will keep working and obtain the goal, then he will get used to the new item then set another goal and keep having even more desires. 
Nothing wrong with this. Just personally I don't think that I would be happy chasing things for the bulk of my life. Some folks like it some folks don't. I just don't. But as mentioned, having desires/wants could be good or bad depending on how you view it.



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Very highly related to this post but in a different context. 

A long long time ago, I didn't like to eat raw food. 
I didn't like to eat raw salmon/ tuna/ whatever.
Like why would anyone want to eat raw stuff when you could have them cooked?
Aren't raw stuff cold and clammy and potentially hazardous to your health?
This was when I was around 17 years old. 

One day, I decided that I would learn how to enjoy raw food especially sashimi.
I knew it could be done. I've known for a long time that humans can get used to almost anything.
As long as there is sufficient exposure to the experience. Humans are always able to adapt.
Well, WHY would I want to even bother to try to learn to like sashimi?
Most people would just leave it as it is. Why bother right?
Ok. For me, I always believe in learning, in understanding why.
I want to understand why 126 million Japanese are able to appreciate such a product.
If there are so many people who like something, there MUST be some merits to it.
It IS possible that I never find any good in it for myself.
But I wanted to at least try to appreciate it.

So what did I do. 
I previously did not mind going to Sakae Sushi.
When I was 17, the sushi there wasn't too bad.
(I never go to Sakae anymore. The sushi is of very poor quality. For the same price, I can easily find better sushi)
Well, anyway, I went to Sakae Sushi when I was very very hungry. And ordered some salmon sushi.
I would take a plate or 2. Then I would just continue to eat the normal cooked stuff.
Cos everything tastes better when you're hungrier. So that helped me to be able to eat the raw fish.
Naturally, the first few times I did this, I did not appreciate the raw fish very much.
But as time went on, after 5 attempts, 10 attempts, I started to appreciate raw fish.
It started out as, I did not mind it anymore, and soon, I began to like it and was willing to consume other types of raw fish. 
From then on, I was able to appreciate the subtle sweetness of raw fish. 
(Note, I did not go every day or every week, I went regularly enough and tried it sufficiently enough.)

More recently, around 4 years back, I decided to do something similar.
With the Korean wave and all that, I decided to overcome my reluctance to kimchi.
I don't take raw garlic very well. And I still don't. 
Kimchi is made with garlic. Lots of it.
Similarly, the reason why I decided to do this was, if 50 million Koreans like it, there has to be something good about it. 
I started out in the same way. There was this Korean restaurant near the place I used to work. I waited til I was very hungry before I went to eat. They would provide the side dishes like all Korean restaurants before the main course came. And I would grudgingly stuff some kimchi into my mouth. Being hungry really made it more approachable. When the main course came, I would mix some kimchi into my dish and continue to eat it. 
Similar to the situation with raw fish, I gradually got used to kimchi. 
I now enjoy kimchi when mixed with my food. In fact, I sometimes crave for it. However, I still am still unable to really appreciate kimchi just by itself. Strange. Considering that I'm ok with a spoon of rice with kimchi on top.

Many folks have asked me why I even bothered to do the above.
They are ok with not liking the food and not understanding why anyone appreciates the product. 
What do/did I gain from this experience? Considering that there is plenty of other Japanese/Korean cuisine to try.
My response to this is simple. I like to try new things. There has to be some goodness to it considering that millions of people like it. And to me, this is really a challenge for myself. Because, why not?
I now am able to like something which I once did not like. And that's a good thing right?

Ok so what's this whole post about? 
Well, you can get used to spending less. You can get used to wanting less. 
You can get used to it such that you don't even have wants.
You can get too used to good things and eventually take it for granted.
Or you could get used to buying a SGD500 bag and feel to kick and start to buy more expensive stuff to get the thrill of buying.
You can also get used to bad things and overcome them.
Or you can get used to a bad thing like a bad job and stay in the job and console yourself that "all jobs are like this" and not do anything about it. 

So you see. Humans are adaptable. You can get used to anything. Good or bad, it's all up to you.



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This is another concept which I wish to share with readers.

My wife has a clothing budget of about SGD200 for clothes every quarter.
Previously, she would shop at retail outlets, and stores these days sell their clothes at something like SGD40-50 per piece. For around 4 pieces

Now, like many others, she buys online from Taobao.
Each piece is around SGD15 I think
Sure she gets clothes which don't fit. But she still gets more pieces which fit as compared to buying from retail outlets.
So SGD200 budget at SGD15 each is around 13 pieces, of which maybe 5 aren't suitable resulting in 8 pieces. 
So wow, with the same budget, she now gets 8 pieces as compared to previously when she only got 4. 

The issue is this. The cupboard is running out of space.
Previously, when she bought at retail outlets, she gets 4 pieces per quarter or 16 pieces per year.
Now, she gets 8 pieces or 32 pieces per year. 

This doesn't logically make sense right. Since taobao things are cheaper she should be spending less in general. Not to mention that since she could live with 4 pieces per quarter then she shouldn't need 8 pieces per quarter now. I understand that it makes some economic sense to ship things in one shipment rather than break them up or something like that. I'll leave it as that. 

So of course we had a discussion on this. I mentioned that our cupboard is running out of space and that she was ok with 4 per quarter so why need 8 per quarter this time?

So we came to a compromise. She will buy stuff one month later. 
Instead of buying stuff every 3 months, she would buy it every 4 months. Straight out that is 25% savings. 
Anyway, after a while, she stopped buying anymore stuff from taobao as the novelty of super cheap stuff wears off. We haven't really received anymore packages from China for quite some time already.

Well, the concept I would like to share with readers today is to try to push spending 1 month later. 
If you feel that you need a new... whatever, just hold off for 1 month before buying it. This is not trying to let you feel you don't need it. But rather for the existing product to be used for 1 more month. Unless the item is already falling apart then that is a different matter. As there is always something new to buy for the house. A new TV or table or sofa or chairs or whatever. Every month there is additional spending on replacement items. So the idea is to push everything back 1 month. By doing so, in the long run, everything adds up. All your stuff gets an increased 5% additional lifespan which means more savings. Seriously, just waiting for that extra 1 month to replace the product won't impact your lifestyle by much due to the slightly dirty sofa or slightly blur TV, etc. You've already lived with it for .... months already.



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So I've been making reference to bonus interest rates from banks by using certain credit cards.
I realized I didn't have any post to explain these promotions.
I'll cover only the 3 main banks in Singapore cos I'm pretty traditional when it comes to banks and I like the availability of the outlets and the ATM and all that. I'm also skeptical about other banks as they may be run differently and all that. The other banks usually have better deals though. I'm just concerned that the next financial crisis might affect a bank like Standard Chartered in London and somehow it affects the Standard Chartered in Singapore. So I tend to keep my money in the 3 main Singapore banks.

UOB One Account
Spend SGD500 on UOB One Card or any selected card
1% on first SGD10k
1.5% on the next SGD20k
2% o the next SGD20k
0.5% on any amount above that
Resulting in 1.6% up to the first SGD50k (IF you have SGD50k)

OR

Spend SGD500 on UOB One Card or any selected card
+ Credit your salary (min. S$2,000) or Pay 3 bills monthly via GIRO
1.5% on first SGD10k
2% on the next SGD20k
3.33% o the next SGD20k
0.05% on any amount above that
Resulting in 2.43% up to the first SGD50k (IF you have SGD50k)

My wife and I spend SGD500 monthly on the UOB One card and we make 3 monthly GIRO transactions from this bank account. 
I feel this is a good account as I am currently not working and, thus, am unable to credit my salary into this account. The company my wife works for only pays to DBS bank so she also cannot credit her salary to any other bank account. This account allows us to use 3 GIRO payments as a substitute to enjoy the 2.43% offered by UOB.

OCBC 360 Account
This is really a good account
0.05% base interest
+1.2% interest when crediting your salary of at least S$2,000 through GIRO
+0.5% interest when paying any 3 bills online or through GIRO
+0.5% interest when spending at least SGD500 on OCBC Credit Cards

Other bonus include
+1% interest when you buy a financial product from OCBC and get this bonus for 12 months
+1% per annum on the increase balance month on month
(If your last balance was SGD100, and this month your balance is SGD300,
you get 1% x SGD200 / 12)

The bonus interest will be applied on the first SGD60k
So that's 2.25% interest on SGD60k (IF you have SGD60k)

If I was working or if the company my wife works for could credit her salary into this account, we would use this account. Firstly, the interest can be applied on the first SGD60k which is more than the UOB SGD50k. Next we would use the OCBC 365 card. This card requires less monitoring and gives rebates once the spending is more than SGD600. Any incremental amount is also awarded rebates. Whereas the UOB one card is by tiers and any spending between the tiers does not earn rebates. For more details refer to my post on credit cards.

POSB Cash Back Account
This is a new account
You get the below cashback if you utilize at least 3 out of the below 5 categories.

Salary 
SGD20 if you credit your salary of SGD6,700 into this account
If you credit less salary you get less cashback
SGD7.50 if you credit the minimum of SGD2,500 into this account

Credit Card spending
SGD20 if you spend SGD6,700 on POSB/DBS credit cards accumulated across all cards
If you spend less on the cards you get less cashback

Home Loan
SGD30 if your monthly loan installment is SGD1000 
If your monthly loan installment is less than SGD1000 you get less cashback

Insurance related products
SGD30 if your monthly insurance premium purchased from POSB/DBS is SGD1000
If your monthly insurance is less than SGD1000 you get less cashback

Unit Trust Investments
SGD30 if you invest SGD1000 per month in Unit Trusts provided by POSB/DBS bank
If your monthly investment is less than SGD1000 you get less cashback

The most practical categories are
Salary, Credit card spending and Home loan.
To get the max cashback from this, you need to
1) Credit SGD6,700 salary
2) Spend SGD6,700 in credit card spending
3) Pay SGD1,000 in monthly loan installment
And you get SGD70 back.

Seriously, this is a rubbish account.
To get the practical maximum cash back, I have to spend my whole salary and I still have to pay my monthly installment. To get a measly SGD70.
If I had SGD6,700 pay, I would save up SGD50,000 soon and get 2.43% interest using the UOB One Account, which amounts to about SGD100 per month. And I only need to spend SGD500 on my UOB credit card.
I never really made the calculation til today so I never really thought about it.
But really. This account is crap.

Edited - After reading my15hourworkweek, about this account, a good idea, since I have a DBS/POSB mortgage, is for me to spend lightly on my POSB everyday card and make a small monthly contribution to investments. This will qualify me in the 3 categories to receive at least SGD30 on the SGD1000 monthly mortgage I pay. 

At least there is the 
DBS Multiplier Account right?!
You are supposed to get up to 2.68% interest when you bank with DBS.
Ok so you need to 
1) Credit your salary,
2) Spend on your credit card,
3) Make home loan payments,
4) Buy one of their insurance related products,
5) Invest in their Unit Trust or credit your dividends into your DBS account

The magic number is SGD20,000
If you only use 1 or 2 out of the 5 services, example, you only credit your salary, you need to credit SGD20,000 to get 2.08% on your first SGD50k
If you credit your salary and spend on your credit card. Both totaling SGD20,000, you again get 2.08% on your first SGD50k

If you use 3 or more of the 5 categories, the max interest you get is 2.68%
So if you credit your salary + spend on your credit card + make home loan payments all totaling SGD20k, you get 2.68% interest on the first SGD50k
Once again, this is the max interest you can earn. Meaning if your transactions total less than SGD20k, you will earn less interest.

This  is another rubbish account by DBS/POSB. Once again I never really went down to the actual numbers until today when I'm writing this article. But really. DBS/POSB isn't even really trying to be competitive. Well I think they don't have a lack of funds anyway so they aren't too concerned with getting Singaporean funds. 

Notable Mention
OCBC Bonus + Account
Initial deposit of SGD10k
Minimum monthly balance of SGD3k (else SGD2 penalty will be charged per month)
0.05% base interest per annum
If no withdrawal for the month then +0.75% bonus interest per annum
If there are any withdrawals during the month then only the base interest is awarded for that month

This account is useful for funds which are more than the maximum amount for bonus interest in the respective banks.
Meaning, if you already have SGD50k in UOB One account, then any amount above SGD50k will only earn you 0.05% so you should put the funds into this OCBC Bonus + account to earn additional interest.
Similarly, if you already have SGD60k in OCBC 360 account, then any amount above SGD60k will only earn you 0.05% so you should put any additional funds into this Bonus+ account as well to earn more interest.



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So I moved to my new place some time back.
This was one of the things which we had to decide on.
Which water heater to use.

Firstly, there is the storage water heater being heated by electricity.
Next, there is the gas heater being heated by gas.
Then, the instant heater also heated by electricity.
Finally there is this Bennington water heater which is something like a high powered instant heater which can be used to heat 2 bathrooms with 1 device.

I have had the benefit of using the first 3 water heaters so I did have quite a strong opinion on which to install.

For the storage water heater, the  cost is SGD250 or so.
Using this, the hot water pressure is high for showering.
One installed device will provide hot water to 2 bathrooms.
Using electricity to heat the water is more expensive than gas.
Need to heat up the whole tank before using, may waste energy as you may not use all the hot water.
Need to wait to heat up the whole tank before using.

For the gas heater, the cost is SGD200 or so.
One installed device will provide hot water to 2 bathrooms.
Using gas to heat the water is relatively cheaper than electricity.
The heating device is placed near the kitchen, so when turned on, the hot water will flow from the kitchen through the pipes to the bathroom. This can take around 30 seconds to 1 minute.
Need to drill holes to lay new pipes for cold water to flow to the gas heater and pipes for the hot water to flow from the heater to the toilet to connect with existing internal pipes.

The instant heater cost ranges between SGD80-200 per unit.
Needs to install 1 heater per bathroom.
Using electricity costs more than gas to heat things up.
The instant heater is placed right beside the shower. Hot water is available instantly.
The water pressure is somewhat lower after flowing through the heater.

The Bennington water heater costs around SGD300
One installed device can provide hot water to 2 bathrooms.
Uses electricity so costs a bit more than gas.
The heater is placed in one bathroom so that bathroom will have hot water quite quickly.
The second bathroom will have to wait for the water to flow through the pipes to reach the second bathroom.

I've used the first 3 heaters before and I decided to install the instant water heater. 
Here are my considerations.
1) Why not the storage heater?
I've used a storage heater when I was younger. It is very irritating to wait for the whole tank of water to heat up. Imagine coming back from work or a run and having to wait for the water to heat up before you are able to bathe. Not to mention we shower quickly and maybe use less than half the heated water. Meaning you heated more water than necessary and wasted the power in heating it up.

2) Why not the gas heater?
It is more expensive to use electricity to heat up water.
However, my wife and I don't shower for very long. Also if we use a gas heater, we would let the water run until the hot water reached the bathroom resulting in a wastage of water instead. 

3) Why not the Bennington?
Essentially we don't need to spend SGD299 to provide hot water to 2 bathrooms. We only use 1 bathroom. Also, we have to wait for heated water to flow into the main bathroom before we are able to use it resulting in wasted water. So why spend SGD299 when I can get an instant water heater for around SGD100?

Ok we did contemplate having hot water for both bathrooms. We don't shower at the same time so we take turns to bathe. But maybe someone would stay over at our place and it would be useful to have heated water in both bathrooms. After much consideration, we were buying "insurance" for no real benefit. So I assume that I might need to have heated water for my 2nd bathroom. When would I need the heated water? Well typically if someone comes to my place to stay over. How often does someone come to my place in a year... Maybe once a month? Out of that, how many will stay over? Probably none. Furthermore, if they stayed over, they could just use the bathroom with heated water. No real issues. So why would I need to provide hot water to both bathrooms? Anyway, if I needed to in future, I could just install another instant water heater in my other bathroom.

Of course this decision is just for myself. Other people have other requirements. Example folks with kids may need to have both bathrooms heated so that more people could shower at the same time. Or some people may like higher pressure water and thus decide to install a storage heater. So to each their own. 



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As I do these posts, there's this nagging in my head.
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.

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I've taken to selling things on Carousell.
This is an app for easy selling of stuff. 
Typically people sell stuff which are already used but sometimes people will also sell stuff which are new.
The problem with this app is that there are a lot of low ballers. Meaning folks who offer a really really low price for them to get a good  deal. It's quite irritating.
Also there are a lot of people who just ask a lot of questions and after that they don't contact you anymore  about the product.
Oh well. Not important. There's all kinds of people in the world and everyone  wants to get a good deal or ask questions etc etc. So be it.

This post is basically to highlight the value of items. Or rather the zero value of items. 

Recently I sold my GPS at SGD50.
I bought it 6 years ago at SGD199.
I listed it on Carousell for SGD120. I received offers for SGD50 but I declined them as I was hoping to get more money for the item. I was aiming to sell it for SGD80 lowest.
After a few months of waiting and rejecting people and getting rejected myself, I decided to just sell the item off at SGD50.

Basically, the GPS has no more value to me. It is a zero value item. I do not use it anymore. I use my handphone to navigate if necessary. It collects dust and I don't really look at it. It basically serves no utility to me. So I decided to remove my mental barrier that I paid SGD199 for it. Cos previously, I paid SGD199 for the item for its purpose (utility). Now, since it is worth nothing to me in terms of utility, it is essentially worth zero. After I changed my thinking, I decided that selling it above zero would be beneficial to me. As any amount above zero in cash would serve as utility to me. So I amended the price of my listing to SGD80, waited for 1-2 days, someone offered me SGD50, I sold the item.

So today's point is about utility.
When you bought something, you paid a price for it for a certain purpose.
Usually the price paid is around the same as the utility value. 
If utility value is greater than price then you got a good deal. 
If price is greater than utility, then you got chopped.
Anyway, after awhile, you stop using the item for whatever reason. 
Don't like it anymore, obsolete, no time to use it anymore, etc.
When that happens the utility falls to zero.
No need to feel sad about it. The item served its purpose at the time you bought it. 
Now that the item has zero utility, except maybe to be used as a paper weight, if you can convert this item with zero utility to anything with positive utility, you have earned something. 
Of course that doesn't mean you sell it for the cheapest price. You still try to get as much value out of that as possible.
So for example my GPS, I won't sell it for SGD10 since I know I can sell it for at least SGD50. 
Maybe I could sell it for more, I don't know. But I haven't gotten any offers more than SGD50 so I just took the deal. SGD50 worth of utility is better than zero.

So if you have old stuff that you're unwilling to sell off for cheap cos of the price you paid for it, remember, the item has zero value to you now and that you can convert that to actual value for yourself. You just have to remove the mental barriers which you set for yourself. 

Note. Sentimental value IS a utility value. So if you feel that something brings back sweet memories, it also counts as utility value. Items with zero utility really means that the item does nothing for you anymore. Regardless of intrinsic value or extrinsic value.



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Do you still subscribe to cable TV via Starhub or Singtel or M1?
Seriously?
These days there are a whole load of TV boxes available. 
Example XiaoMi TV box, UBOX, Chromecast, etc

I find that the Cable TV business model entirely outdated. But some folks still choose to subscribe to this and pay an additional ... I don't know an additional how much is it?
Not important. 

Essentially, all you need is internet. Then you can watch almost everything. 
You can either stream it via the box itself, you can use your laptop and plug the laptop to the TV and display it on the TV, or you could stream it on your phone and push the images onto the TV. So many ways and yet many folks are still paying good money for a monthly subscription. 

Many excuses which I hear are from the older generation. Typically 40+ and above, such as.
1) I like the time schedule. 
Apparently many people like the time schedule which allows them to watch whatever TV drama it is at maybe 8pm-9pm. Or whatever time schedule they are watching their favourite show.

2) I don't know how to use.
No seriously, just learn it. You can use an iPhone or any other phone. Ask your son/daughter/grand kids to teach you. You can save maybe SGD10 per month at least and that equates to SGD120 per year and you learn a new skill.

3) I don't know what are the new shows to search for.
Another common problem. Some folks are so used to watching whatever it is on TV. There used to be a time when the broadcasting corporations would just broadcast shows and users could only just watch what was being shown. Now, people are able to search for what they want to watch and watch it whenever they want. However, some people have not progressed to this phase and they cannot be bothered to find out the latest show to watch so that they can stream it. 
Like in point 2. Just ask your son/daughter/grand kids I'm sure they will be happy to oblige.

It's really amazing how folks are still stuck on Cable TV. It's like no one else is using a Nokia phone anymore right? With new technology, people should be moving forward and not stick to their old ways. Somehow the demand for cable TV still persists and this allows the telcos to charge for the services. 

This is similar to this example.
There is a cow, you are allowed to milk the cow at any time to drink the milk. But you must learn how to milk the cow.
Alternatively, you can go to the guy sitting beside the cow, who will sell you the same milk. He only opens at a specific schedule so you have to buy when he's around.

Quite a obvious answer but many people are still buying the milk.

Oh and on a side note, I have a stupid TV plugged to a XiaoMi box. I find this is cheaper than buying a smart TV straight out. 
The XiaoMi box isn't a great box. But it serves my purpose. I usually stream on my handphone and just project it on the TV. I hardly use the apps on the XiaoMi box except for maybe Youtube. I have no recommendations for which box to buy. I'm not too interested in the different boxes cos I don't watch much TV. The XiaoMi box is good enough for me. 

Anyway, seriously, just learn how to use the box. Any box. And cancel that subscription.
​It saves you money.
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Some folks may think this is pretty extreme.
Ok hair cuts aren't particularly expensive. 
Around SGD12 at QB house. It could be cheaper at other places. 
I cut around once every month.
So it's going to be SGD144 per year. 

Anyway I first tried cutting my own hair just for the fun of it. 
I bought one of those shavers which the barbers use. I bought it at SGD40. I've heard some places sell for SGD20 so I was pretty upset when I found out. 

Cutting your own hair has a lot to do with feeling. I can shave the sides quite easily. But when it comes to giving myself a high slope on the back, it is pretty much all about feel. I'm quite good with my hands for arts and crafts so I can feel the slope quite easily so I just shave a bit then feel the slope then shave again. 

I just shave the sides and back and don't cut my top so I tend to leave the top to grow til my hair gets long then I'll go to the barber for a short cut and start all over again. Ie, shaving the sides and back and letting the hair grow til it gets really long then go to the barber again.

As I said, I started doing this for fun. Then I realized how easy it is. So I continued doing it. I've been cutting my own hair for around 3 years already. I don't even remember how often I go to the barber for the short cut. I think maybe once every 6-9 months? I'm not sure. 

So yea... it can be done. You can save some money here too. Kinda extreme though, even from my own point of view. 

One thing to note is that I'm not too fussy with looks. I'm ok with the possibility that I mess up my own hair and I end up having to give myself an NSF haircut to clean up the mess.



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