~~Towards Barista FIRE~~

This is my third trip travelling out of ASEAN region, where I have to plan every bit of the itinerary myself (the first was back in May 2024 where me and my mum travelled together to  Japan , and the second was back in November 2024 where me and my mum travelled together to Hangzhou and Suzhou in China ).  With the prior experience from the China trip, I am less concerned and worried about what to plan for our itinerary this time round, as I would have roughly known what my mum would like to experience, and hence what to include and what to exclude in the planning.  In addition, I have learnt how to use Alipay and Amap one year ago, so all in all, this trip is less intimidating for me.  However, as we are going to the mountainous region this time, what worries me more is the weather conditions and the temperature differences between the morning, noon and evening time.  Being unpredictable, I could only overpack, as it is better to be over-prepared than under....

This post is to document my plan for my Barista FIRE journey.  This may not be applicable for everyone, as this plan is drawn up based on my income, my needs, my expenses and my portfolio.  I am splitting my Barista FIRE journey into 4 phases, to enable myself to slowly transit to full retirement in time to come, but with the flexibility of part time active income that will cover any inadequacies in passive income during my journey.  The percentages shown below are just for illustration purposes, and subjected to change at different phases, but for me, it provides a guide on how I intended my Barista FIRE journey to be. Some definition of terms to make my projection clearer: a)     Monthly Total Expense (MTE): Total spending projected monthly, currently standing at SGD 4K. b)     Dividend For Expenses (DFE): The amount of dividends I intend to use for spending monthly, currently targeted at SGD 1.5K per month initially. c)     ...

This will be a relatively short post, just to update on the transactions for the month. For the month of November, it was once again a volatile month for my portfolio.  In the first half of the month, the market sentiment was filled with positivity even with the shutdown of the US government.  However, at the mid of the month when the US government reopens, the fear of Artificial Intelligence (AI) bubble popping starts to spread throughout the market and volatility returned.  For the next few days, the big US Tech faced a small correction.  This is exacerbated with Jerome Powell signaling that the FED is intending not to cut interest rates in December.  This is reflected in FedWatch tool which showed that the probability of the FED cutting rates by 5 basis points is less than 50%.  I do not know is this a temporary retracement of the share prices, to allow the Christmas year end window dressing effect to take place nearer the date and share prices propel t...

Do you ever feel like your money disappears as soon as it hits your bank account?  You are not alone, because I definitely feel the same way.  In a world of constant advertising and subscription services, it is easy to let spending run on autopilot, pushing our long-term dreams further and further away.  However what if you could turn the situation around?  What if you could tell your money exactly where to go, ensuring that every dollar is working towards the life you truly want?  The secret lies in two powerful steps: creating a realistic budget and strategically trimming your lifestyle expenses.  In the previous post, we discussed why and how to create a personal budget.  In this post, we can look at how to trim down expenses in our journey to financial freedom. I know many people will take the word "cutting expenses" with a negative connotation, as it seems like restricting one's spending till one has no opportunity to enjoy the little luxuries in...

Do you ever feel like your money disappears as soon as it hits your bank account?  You are not alone, because I definitely feel the same way.  In a world of constant advertising and subscription services, it is easy to let spending run on autopilot, pushing our long-term dreams further and further away.  However what if you could turn the situation around?  What if you could tell your money exactly where to go, ensuring that every dollar is working towards the life you truly want?  The secret lies in two powerful steps: creating a realistic budget and strategically trimming your lifestyle expenses. I know many people will take the word "budgeting" with a negative connotation, but it is important to understand that budgeting is not about deprivation.  It is, in the longer term, about empowerment.  It is about aligning your daily habits with your biggest goals. The Foundation - How to Create a Budget That Actually Works A budget is not a financial con...

Dividend investing often feels simple - buy solid companies, collect steady income, and enjoy financial freedom one dividend at a time.  However when it comes to measuring how well your portfolio is performing, it may not be so straightforward.  One of the most debated questions among dividend investors is should one evaluate one's portfolio based on yield on cost (YOC) or yield on market value (YOMV)?  Both metrics tell a story about your income, but they tell different stories, and depending on your goal, one may matter more than the other. Understanding the Two Metrics 1)      Yield on Cost (YOC) Yield on Cost = Annual Dividends per Share ÷ Purchase Price per Share YOC measures how much dividend income one receive each year relative to the price one originally paid for the stock.  For example, if a dividend investor bought a stock at SGD 10 and it now pays SGD 1 in annual dividends, the YOC is 10%.  Even if the stock has risen to SGD 20 to...

I have been tracking my income and expenses all the way since 2008.  However, all these while I have only been recording, but did not evaluate and analyse my expenses all these years.  Since I have the intention to begin my first phase of Barista FIRE next year, I think it is time for me to analyse my expenses, so I can estimate the minimum amount of part-time active income I will need to achieve next year in order for my cashflow to be healthy. Looking back at my expenses from 2022 to 2025, I am quite surprised at how my spending pattern evolved over these few years (and probably I have underestimated my expenses all these years).  I have always believed that being mindful about expenses is the foundation of financial independence and not just earning more, but also learning to live well within my means.  However, reality may be a little different from expectations.  Probably it is time for me to be more mindful of my spending. Four Years Of Data: The Story Be...