FU money and why I started investing: Opinion Piece

The way I see things

Much like we need electricity to keep the lights in our homes on, we couldn’t care less about the electricity we want the light! I see money as current (currency), its robust and constant flow much like the electricity in wires is what would allow me to switch on the lights. Just like that, I see a robust and constant flow of money (fiat currency) into my coffers as the means necessary to attain that freedom I desire and the ability to choose and be free to pursue.

A journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step

But how did I start out? It’s the usual suspect, Rich Dad Poor Dad (RDPD) (I can’t quite recall who introduced me to this book) but I remember that I bought my first preloved copy from Book Point at Bras Basah complex. RDPD though as cliche as it may sound was a proverbial brick that was thrown at my perspective on personal finance. Time passed and I went ahead and bought my first stock. I was super excited when I got my first dividend (I think it was 50 cents) income felt like I was on top of the world. I must have thought to myself FINALLY A PROOF OF CONCEPT!

My Formative Years - NS & Post ORD

Through my NS days, I squirrelled away my allowances religiously (or at least tried to) and invested them in the markets. You must be wondering, don't lie, bro, you sure NS time when bookout you never go club “eh Wah, eh Wah, EH WHA”. NO, I DIDN’T, more like I couldn’t. I was on a forced savings plan courtesy of the Singapore Police Force (SPF). I couldn’t go to any place of ill repute (bars and clubs) in my division's jurisdiction, it just so happens that Clarke Quay (CQ) was in my jurisdiction. BUT nevertheless every Wednesday, (ladies' night) without fail I was at CQ! On standby that is… in case partygoers decided to drink, drunk and drama (or take a dip in the river).

My time in SPF taught me so much, while on patrol I saw first-hand the underbelly of our seemingly green and beautiful city-state. In the station, I was privy to the ugly side of office politics and drama. Unassumingly these experiences only served to strengthen my resolve to ensure that I needed a rainy day reserve (back then I didn't have the thought to call it ‘FU fund’). I imagined it to be much like Singapore’s national reserves, the would-be Joshua’s national reserve to dip into in case of an emergency or the proverbial rainy day (At that time I didn't know that people had a less vulgar name “6 months emergency fund”).

As you can tell disgust and spite are pretty powerful drivers for me. The time came for me to ORD and went back to being a MOE relief teacher… by now the remuneration was not attractive to me (but it was damn good post-JC while waiting for NS) but I still did it, I mean it was easy money and I still had half a day off after school ended. During the time when I was not MR JOSHUA or CHER! I devoured as many details about companies I was interested in (it was quite haphazard), I just read and read and thought to myself, do I like this company? Is it easy for a noob like me to understand? (This was a simple lesson from Buffet)

Uni lyfe!

University came along and I was excited, I felt happy to start learning again (the brain rot in 2 years was real). While studying I couldn't help myself so I went and found side hustles. I part-timed at the now defunct Starkers bar (I used to frequent the HV branch with my NS mates since CQ was considered a place of ill repute)

But I was always on the lookout for other hustles I started freelancing with caregiving startups (this helped me to both apply what I learnt in school and also boosted my income compared to being a waiter at Starkers). I thought I was making some good income (imagine the shock I was in when I found out after graduating that there were cohort mates who were making a ton more working as student Real estate and insurance agents)

Nevertheless, I was highly optimistic I took any job that was on the app. I didn’t feel the strain (maybe that is because I was younger). It made me happy that I was applying what I learnt and I was earning more and I had money to invest. I had a goal, passive income.

Out in the real world (AKA Adulting)

During my summer attachments at the hospitals, the familiar horror of toxic work culture and office politics was once again laid bare. But at this time I was still a student very much in NS I knew I would be out of there in 2 years. Therefore it felt like a little fish in a glass fish tank dipped into the sea to get a taste of the real working world. I knew I was only there for my attachments, but I thought to myself “that could be me when I graduate and actually start working”

I carried on hustling while in University. I felt like I would need a strong money raft/ boat. Therefore I took up sponsorship for 2 years (it ends in June 2022) (which gave me some money for signing my life away for 2 years) I imagined University to be a safe harbour. But as my penultimate year approached I could see the harbour coming to an end and the great wide ocean wide open. The waves didn’t seem too friendly and I graduated during the pandemic and went straight to the frontlines dealing with COVID cases (It's like I did 4 years of national service 2 in police and 2 in the hospital) HAHA.

A whole different can of worms

Now I see colleagues resigning simply due to exhaustion, some leaving for Aussie, NZ, US etc for a better work-life balance after reevaluating their life goals. I personally have not taken a holiday in 3 years. (I however just booked a trip to Bali in the coming month (July 2022)… so I wrote this article in June, but didn't really have the courage to post it… I mean why would anyone want to know). I have thought about no pay leave. Or even leaving the profession altogether and trying my hand at something else (e.g. like investments, but I know it is a cutthroat world out there, and there are probably a ton of skilled individuals out there). I still enjoy reading up (fundamental analysis) and investing. It genuinely makes me happy I still do this post-shift… haha

COME TO THE FREAKING POINT this is exhausting!!!

You might ask me what is the relevance of all this (No I am not Amber Heard… my dog stepped on a bee) but rather I believe that my FU money is the one that has enabled me to even entertain the possibility of taking a no-pay leave or thinking about leaving the profession. But I am not deluded. I know what I have is not enough to live off. I know I still have to perform active work, but I shudder to think of the scenario if I simply had spent all my allowances and had not saved or invested. It seems like a very claustrophobic thought.

I imagine FU money to be quite vulgar, rather I like to call it the money raft, which I hope to build up onto a nice sampan — motor boat — then a yacht. If I could go back in time I would like to tell my younger self that he had understood the concept of delayed gratification pretty well. I wish I could tell my juniors from my course that the best thing that they can do is to have options and the financial backing to make sure those options are readily available to them and the courage to take that leap of faith when the time comes. I finally found the courage to post this piece today after a prominent local seedly contributor told me he enjoyed reading my article and found it relatable (I am very thankful that took the time to read through it). Secondly, an incident that made me acutely thankful for the cash reserve I built up happened today (I guess this is my way of letting off some steam).

What the future holds

I am not ready to paddle my sampan away… but I have faith that one day I can sit on my yacht and be grateful for the good decisions I made when I was younger (probably with my girlfriend by that time HAHA).

P.S. Inflation pls maintain

Disclaimer: The information in this opinion article serves as an educational piece and is not intended to be and does not constitute personalized investment or financial advice. For investment advice, readers should always perform their due diligence and consider their financial goals before investing in any stock aka DYOR. The writer may have a vested interest in the company mentioned.