~~Towards Barista FIRE~~

This post is like a sequel to my first Cuti Cuti Malaysia post in January 2025 where I went to Kuala Lumpur (KL) for a solo trip.  So this time, I am off to another popular traveling, feasting and retiring destination in Malaysia, and that is none other than Penang.  Once again, I believe I should promote tourism in my country to readers of this blog! For this trip, I decided to fly from Singapore Changi Airport again instead of Senai Airport like during the KL trip, because the fares were quite similar, so not much benefits for me to travel all the way to Senai Airport first.  With that, I can start my short holiday with the unforgettable Singapore Laksa treat from SATS lounge in Terminal 1.  Of course, to save money for lunch, I had more than just one bowl, accompanied with other delicious dishes.  After a full lunch, it is time to prepare to board the plane for this foodie adventure! Finally, after 1.5hrs short flight, I arrived at Malaysia’s food paradise ...

For heads up, I am no property expert, in fact, I am more of an amateur.  This is also the main reason why I am rather hesitant to write this post as it discloses my "failed venture", or should I say, an investment decision that did not turn out the way I thought it would.  However I think it is important for me myself to look into my failure and scrutinize it so that I can truly learn and grow from this episode, and thus be in a better financial position to progress into Barista FIRE phase.  Note that this is not financial advice, and it is mainly as a personal record.  As I grow older and gradually refine my financial journey, I often find myself questioning the balance between investing for future retirement and reducing debt for peace of mind.  Recently, this question has become more pressing because of my intention to progress into my next phase of life, Barista FIRE.  The main issue lies with my investment property in Malaysia.  For information,...

Recently, I have been struck by two things I watched that felt uncomfortably close to home.  One was a video by The Joyful Investors , where Chief Corporate Officer from HRNetGroup shared that hiring demand today is strong at two ends of the spectrum: ground staff earning below SGD 5K, and C-suite executives above SGD 15K.  However the mid-level employees, those in the SGD 5K to 15K range, are increasingly being squeezed out.  The other was a video by  CNA Insider , which highlighted that workers in their late 30s and early 40s are now more prone to retrenchment compared to other age groups. Hearing both points together made me pause.  I am in my early 40s now, which means I fall right into that shrinking middle.  Is the middle class disappearing and is the middle age groups facing some form of employability crisis?  Even though I am self-employed, does that also mean that inevitably with time, my job (as a tutor) will also be replaced by AI?  Is...