Moving on to the next phase of life~!

On 11 Nov 2016, I have finally done it!

A nicely executed proposal on the beach, with a lighted pathway to a heart, and a beautiful lady with a definitive answer to end it off =) 

I have been quite busy preparing for this proposal ever since I have ended my project deliverable in Sep. Amidst my preparations for my Vietnam and Hong Kong trip in Oct, I managed to squeeze in time to do all the essentials things for this proposal. 

Dearest was pretty much surprised because I threw her off quite a bit on the tentative period that I would propose, and she was felt that the whole plan was executed very well; from the initiation letter by my colleague at my company DnD, to the blindfolding, to the unfolding to the actual venue, to the actual proposal, and the decorations back in the hotel room which I booked as a celebration, and also as a back-up. She also liked the wooden proposal box which I built from raw materials =) worth all the efforts that I have put in. 

As Dearest have put it, we have been promoted to the next level: from a boyfriend-girlfriend relationship, to a fiancee-fiance relationship. Yeah to the next phase of life~!

Dearest also told me to take a break and focus on myself after being preoccupied with this for quite a while. I also agree on this. A few days back I was struggling to find a focus in my life after being focused on this one single thing for so long. There seems to be quite a bit of things that I want to do, but I don't know where to start. I want to continue to my learning on app development/Java, I want to focus on exercise (because Spartan is coming up this Sat, siao liao~), I want to eat and sleep heathly, I want to play those games that I haven't touch for the longest time (Skyrim, Witcher 3, Shadow of Mordor...), I want review the savings accounts because of the interest changes, I want ...

It kinda got a bit frustrating, and it took a good 15 minutes of quiet meditation before I could calm my nerves down . 

There are tons of things to do, but I have limited time to execute them. So it's high time for me to read through the book the I bought previously and was reading halfway through before I got so busy.

The 5 Choices: The Path to Extraordinary Productivity

The exercises inside book makes me prioritize on what aspects of life that are important to me, and that I need to proactively plan my schedule around them. I would probably blog out the exercises here in order to document it somewhere.

Life just flows away when you're not paying attention to it.

I recall a phrase from a chinese song that I like which aptly describes this:

当你发现时间是贼了，他已偷光你的选择 - 李宗盛， 给自己的歌

[English translation: When you realized that time is a thief, it has already robbed you of your choices] 

I don't like the feeling of being robbed.

So I would rather go 'rob' time.

It's been a decade long.

Just not long ago, I have finally achieved something that I have always wanted for the last decade, but wasn't able to.
This year, I put in efforts into training, specifically my running, in order to create that possibility.
And that is, my Individual Physical Proficiency Test (IPPT)!

I didn't feel that I was ready to achieve a Gold standard, be it my push-ups, sit-ups or running.
But because I was in camp for reservist, I thought I would just clock a Silver first.

As it turns out, I was in quite a good form that day!
And here is my results:

And it's a... GOLD!

I was rather surprised about my results for push-ups and sit-ups.
And that gave me some hope of achieving a Gold.
That's what motivated me to push even harder for 2.4km run, landing me the best timing I have for the past decade.

As a quote from a well-liked Japanese anime/manga called "History's Strongest Disciple Kenichi", or “史上最强弟子兼一”

“The only thing that won't betray you, is your training"

I shall continue to strive on in my physical well-being. 

The busy period has ended!

It has! Finally! (Hopefully)
at least for this period.

It's time to get my engine started for all the things I have been waiting to start/continue.

Was reading some Facebook articles and came across these few lines of wisdom in dealing with life in general.
Thought I would just list them here, for when I have the chance to look back and reflect, or when I need guidance in life, I can refer back to these lines of wisdom.

Source: http://mindcity.sina.com.tw/weibo/user/2437421643/3898470261509155

我選擇善良，不是我軟弱，因為我明白，因果不空，善惡終有報應；
我選擇寬容，不是我怯懦，因為我明白，寬容了他人，就是寬容自己；
我選擇糊塗，不是我真糊塗，因為我明白，有些東西爭不來，有些不爭也會來；
我選擇平淡生活，不是我不奢望繁華，因為我明白，功名利祿皆浮雲，耐得住寂寞才能升華自己。

My thoughts:

自己的选择， 自己的因果；
我选择，因为我明瞭。
已过的不成熟，一点一滴，累积成果。

My First Financial Read

I finished this book within 2 days! 

Mainly because it's a very short book; not because I suddenly gain the ability of speed-reading.

But what makes this book special, is because I believed this is my first book on financial knowledge.

Previously, most of my financial knowledge and wisdom (however limited it is), is learned from the web from various sources.

To introduce the book first... 

by Goh Eng Yeow

This short book gives rather broad but sound advice on financial investment into the market that you can make, e.g. buying ETFs such as the STI ETF. It cites quite a bit of knowledge from the famous Warren Buffett, and describes the potential pitfalls in the market, as well as when you should 'make your own'.

Note to self: Not sure whether it's in the book, but take note for SPDR STI ETF (ES3) and Nikko AM STI ETF (G3B).

Some pointers to take note of from the book that I like to archive in this post:

• Time and Health is more important than Wealth
• Buy experiences, instead of materials
• Lucky people try hard to add variety to their lives; to create more "chance opportunities" for themselves to get lucky
• Financial Independence is working a financial plan, keeping to it, and sufficiently covering oneself medically
• Buy and hold stocks that one believe will last, instead of stocks that will have a temporary boost
• Observe the daily happenings to understand what industry/sectors are thriving, and will continue to thrive in future
• Low-beta stocks (stocks less sensitive to market movements) are good for long-term investment
• Look for under-valued stocks when the market is not good 
• Be fearful when others are greedy, and greedy when others are fearful
• Fund flows are indicative of market trends
• Cash is king in uncertain times; the opportunity to snap up assets on the cheap when others do not have the mean to do so
• Avoid overtrading, following the crowd, momentum investing, noise trading, and selling the winners and keeping the losers
• One strategy is to top-slice successful investment - sell enough shares to take back capital and some profit, but still have some shares left to make potential further gains

That's it.

I think I need to buy a new book. 

Another book for the year~!

When one puts in effort and stay committed to a certain task, there is really a lot that one can achieve.
I may not be doing so well in the learning aspect of my life in building up app development skills, but I have been consistently reading up on nonfictional books.

Here's the latest one that I have finished!

by Tim Harford

As per the title suggests, it lets the reader understands about how the principles of economics play out in the things around us. It allows me to appreciate more on the effects that one party has on the entire system which are inter-connected, within and between industries and countries. The world is a complex one, but the theories of economics can help us to understand this complexity a bit better to foretell the consequences or benefits of certain course of actions.

It emphasizes greatly that the world works best in a free trade market as it allows humans to freely communicate and convey information which will work out in a win-win situation. Yet, there are certain restrictions that have to be in place that prohibit a completely free trade situation.

The book also helps me to understand a bit on why Mao's idealistic country didn't come through, and how Deng managed to push China's economy (and probably save millions of people from starving) into greater heights. I'm sure Dearest would appreciate that I have some knowledge of China's history, because she's so passionate about them. haha...

Financial Goals~!

As the date of the July bonus draws nearer, I began to think more about what to do with the extra money that I have. I have almost maxed up my savings account to earn the bonus interest, so I'm thinking of using the excess for investment in stocks. 

And just today, Dearest came to me to ask me to set ...

Yes! Financial goal!

I believe everyone needs to have financial goals for long-term planning.

And to set goals, we need to set some rules also.

As advocated by my company, and also Dearest, we need to set....

SMART goals!

Goals that are Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Relevant, and Time-bound.

So here's what I aimed to do.

To attain a portfolio of $5,000 worth of stocks that provide dividends 

by the end of year 2016

Specific - It's a rather detailed aim

Measurable - $5,000 can be measured

Attainable - $,5000 is within my ability for investment

Relevant - Aligned with my ultimate financial goal of attaining financial freedom (i.e. retirement)

Time-bound - By the end of 2016

So that's it, I will aim towards this!

On the other hand, Dearest also committed to an aim of starting her first investment by the end of year.

Although not as specific as mine, but she plans to explore other alternatives with a financial advisor, and then perhaps plan from there on.

Jiayou us~!

an interesting place to meditate

I have been trying to do meditation on a daily basis (around 10 min) for the past few weeks. Sometimes I feel too tired to do so, or too sick to even maintain a calm state (have been sick for 3 times for the past 2 months).

Today after my morning exercise at the stadium, I was resting on the concrete steps when I suddenly thought it was a good idea to just sit there and enjoy the breeze while doing meditation. And so I did.

It was quite an enjoyable experience for me. The calmness after my exercise, the chirping of the birds, the random sound of people running and walking.. there weren't a lot of people at that time, so there was just sounds instead of chatter that might distract me. The occasional breeze was gentle and cooling. It felt really good! After 10 minutes of sitting there focusing on my breaths and the sound, I felt completely refreshed from the experience! This could turn into a habit. haha..

I'm not entirely sure meditation brings about a general positiveness to my life yet, but at least it gives me a sense of calmness for that 10 minutes that I'm alone in my world of thoughts.