Tag: Writing

Posted on

The Art Of Buying A Home

I’m not a big risk taker when it comes to investment. But I do understand it’s essential to step out the comfort zone if I want to be financially comfortable. It may sound counter-intuitive, yet sometimes it’s really a matter of “who dares win”. Success is biased in that regard.

I used to own a small number of shares in one company many years ago. I did it as an entry point to see if investing in shares would do anything for me. In fact, I didn’t want to in the first place. But my family kept talking me into it so I thought OK, just give it a ago.

It turned out the volatility of share prices and all that was a bit too much for me to take. At the end, when the company was offering to buy those shares back, I jumped on it straight away and sold them. True, I made a tiny fortune out of it, but the amount was too small to mention.

Though being a conservative investor, I did have a thing about real estate. Having said that, I was never interested in buying something as an investment property, more so as an owner occupied residency. Put it simply, a place for me to live in. So, finally in 2006, I bought an apartment unit, signed the next 30 years of my life away by taking up a home mortgage – the biggest debt ever.

Over a decade later, it’s proven to be a smart move. So even a low-risk taker like me can have a crack at investment. That’s not to say, everything will go smoothly even if you’ve done all the right things and your “home work”.

My property buying experiences went from OK to bad in the very beginning, then from bad to worse towards the end. The last straw, just when I thought that’s it, it couldn’t have got any worse, then bang! I finished it on a good note. Those damn awful experiences include:

  • The first property I was interested in had an on-going defect issue. It’d potentially cost a lot of money to fix it – my solicitor warned me not to go ahead. I listened to him.
  • The second property I was interested in, one of the owner’s finance providers had a caveat on it. They refused to release it due to some unresolved debt issue with the owner. Later the owner claimed bankruptcy. The rest is history.
  • I got gazumped. In case you don’t know what gazumping means, the owner accepted a higher offer after they’d already accepted mine. It sucked.

Obviously above mentioned are shorter versions of what actually happened. I found a bit depressing to revisit those bad memories but I believe by talking about my bad experiences here may help others, that’s why I don’t mind doing this. Anyway, at the end, I got nothing, yet still had to pay a big sum of money to the solicitor for the work he’d done. Certainly those unfortunate events taught me many valuable lessons, something money can’t buy.

I guess my message to anyone who’s going to enter in the property market as a buyer is:

  • Research the market well, stay educated and be very careful. Nothing is certain till you’ve got the whole set of keys in your hand.

Another reason for writing this is a friend of mine and his wife are saving money to buy their first home. I thought I’d cover some key things here to help him prepare for what may come their way. So, here we are:

  1. Buying a property is an emotional process. It’s very easy to be drawn to those glossy marketing materials prepared by real estate agents. And when you do go out to inspect those properties, it’s also very easy to grow attachment to those houses that are beautifully presented. Some may well be outside your budget bottom line. Don’t go overboard. It’s a good idea to bring a partner along during inspection or even at auction, if he/she is more a head person. Because when it comes to one of the biggest investments in your life, you need to think more with your head and less with your heart. Anyone who can help you do that, take them with you.
  2. Real estate agents work in the best interest of their clients – seller, not yours if you’re a buyer. They may play games with you and that’s all part of their game plan and strategy to achieve the best possible outcome for their clients. Don’t be too surprised if an agent all of sudden starts ignoring you. Waiting is a big part of game playing. Be patient and keep your options open but within your limits/affordability.
  3. When your offer is accepted. Great! But it’s not the end of it. It’s only the beginning. Hopefully no other forms of drama pop up out of nowhere. From there, you’ll need to find a reputable solicitor to help you check all the nitty-gritty stuff in the contract and other relevant documents. Your friends or colleagues who themselves have gone through a similar process before and had a happy ending can recommend a good solicitor to you. Getting professional people to do the job through word of mouth or a personal referral makes good business sense. It’ll save you time and money or even headaches.
  4. Shop around for a good mortgage provider. Find one that offers competitive rates and also flexibility when needed. For example, a redraw facility, something you may consider should your circumstances change later or when you need a bit extra cash to deal with the unexpected expenses.
  5. Once you get your contracts exchanged, wait for the property to be settled (the standard period is 6 weeks but can be negotiated). The day you go picking up your house keys, it’s a moment of home sweet home. Celebrate! All bitter, hard work is behind you. Enjoy your new place, decorate whatever you like it and live it up!

Good luck to all!

Posted on

You Just Can’t Choose Your Neighbours

Neighbours. Love them, like them, loathe them or hate them, they aren’t going to disappear into outer space.

Who are they? They can be people living upstairs/downstairs from you, next to you, opposite to you. They can also be your coworkers, fellow passengers or patrons sitting a few metres away from you in a restaurant or a food court. All in all, they can be either people you already know or complete strangers happen to be around you at a given time.

Neighbours. Good if they behave themselves. Bad if they don’t. It’s not an understatement to say they can turn your day into night and your night into a very long night. Sounds too familiar?! I won’t be surprised if you come up with a big list of bad experiences from somewhere.

Remember last time you travelled on a plane to overseas or other state? When you checked in, did you get to choose where you wanted to sit? Yes? Great! And? Did you get to choose who’d be sitting right next to you? No? Tough! That’s life!

We’ve heard time and time again that some idiots behaved erratically on a plane causing nuisance to other passengers. In some serious cases, cabin crew members or even security guards had to intervene to help resolve the issue. Those idiots are every traveller’s worst nightmare. We can only hope that we don’t come across any of them when we board a plane next time.

C’est la vie! You’re stuck with bad neighbours. Well, it doesn’t have to end there. What can you do about it? It really depends on your personal intolerance and the terms of effects and consequences that come along.

If you know it’s going to be a short term, a one off thing, meaning you won’t have to see them again tomorrow and in the future, you may as well save your breath, shrug it off, put on your headset and go about your own business. Or if possible, walk away from the situation and settle into to a quieter space to avoid any close contacts. All these can be easily done and are within your own control.

What if it’s a long term, an on-going thing? That is, neighbours whom you’ll likely see again and again on a regular basis. Perhaps it’s time to show some assertiveness, time to act and time to get your life back!

I remember how a year ago my parents’ quality of life was affected by the last neighbour living next door. The noise from many late night parties and the music instruments played during the day was insane. In fact, not just my parents, other residents on the whole street had also been affected by it. I didn’t know how bad it was till I was there to experience it myself a few times. Unfortunately, after making numerous complaints to the next door neighbour, still no signs of improvement.

Then on one weekend when I went to visit parents, it happened the next door was hosting another party that Saturday. We all rolled our eyes, gave a big sigh of disbelief and said: Here we go again… As time went by, when it passed midnight and even after 1 AM in the morning, the noise got louder and louder. No number of sealed windows and locked doors could’ve done enough to block out the “pollution”. Realised we’d done all we can (within our power) to stop it, that night I decided that’s it! I’m going to call the police and make a complaint.

I did. Some 30 minutes later, I heard one police car pulling over just outside near our garage driveway. Within a few minutes, the noise level from the next door dropped to almost zero. What a relief! We finally got our peace and quiet back.

Ever since, no more troublemakers, no more tensions, no more noise from the next door neighbour. A few months later, they moved out. Sweet! Now the new neighbour in the same dwelling has been so much easier to deal with.

I went to see my parents last week and already I could feel the marked difference in their quality of life. It’s got so much better.

No one wants to be on bad terms with their neighbours. But when some bad behaviours are crossing the line, becoming more like harassment or even bullying, then it’s a red flag. Enough is enough. You’ve exhausted your options within your power, you’ve taken matters into our own hands. Now what? Ask for help, call the number, and watch this space – your personal space…

Posted on

The Importance Of Having A Side Hustle

What’s your Plan B? What’s your fallback plan? This is a type of questions you need to ask yourself if you don’t want to fall victim to life’s ups and downs. Don’t have one yet? Maybe it’s time to consider having one.

We know the possible consequences of putting all eggs in one basket. You risk losing them all. From an investment point of view, you should never place yourself in that high-risk position.

Game on! Remember last time you were in a casino playing Roulette? With a handful of chips in your possession, you weighted up your chances of winning, carefully put them on the table. Were they spread across different numbers? Don’t tell me you had a pile of them all sitting on one number! Anyway, I guess this is a terrible example as I’m not a gambler myself and in no way I’m promoting it, but hey you get the point of what I’m trying to say.

The idea of side hustle came up the other day when I was listening to a radio program on internet and later a podcast on YouTube as well (Funny they all go hand in hand. When you find one thing, the next thing along the same lines then pops up magically). A side hustle as the name suggests, is a second job you do outside the main job. It allows you to earn a secondary income while you earn a regular income from the main job.

Why is a side hustle important? Because it’s like your backup system or safety net when things go wrong. If your “Plan A” goes pear shaped, a side hustle is like your Plan B. You won’t left high and dry, with nothing to spare.

What about you? Do you know someone who has a side hustle? How did they start from zero to one? Or even better how did they go from zero to hero? Share with me and my readers if you do. For now though, I’ll share with you someone I know first.

Ian is a colleague of mine working part time over three days a week from Wednesday to Friday. The other two days Monday and Tuesday or the weekend, you won’t see him sitting at home doing nothing. He’s got a gardening business to keep him busy. Of course, he also earns money from it.

So, how did his side hustle take off? To my surprise, it was Direct Mail Marketing he ran locally. He started by personally delivering his advertising materials into the letter boxes in the neighbourhood areas. Yes! As simple as that! The rest? Is history. It’s estimated 90% of business come from the nearby residents some blocks away. How good is that?! Even though Ian is 65, getting closer to an official retirement age, he’s still keeping his mind and body active, while remaining engaged in the community through his business. It’s a win win.

They say don’t give up your day job. I agree. In this day and age, when job security no longer exists, you just never know when your day job will become a thing of the past. A side hustle is like a second skill, a second hobby you develop, it may one day become your number 1 sidekick when you need it most…

Posted on

Too Much Information?

These days everyone operates their life on social media like an open book. With many eye-catching photos and captivating stories shared on the platforms around the world, our moves are constantly on the spotlight. To keep up with the pace we’re now at, we have to be constantly on the go and update our whereabouts as they happen. It does feel like another full time job sometimes.

The success of some content creators has led more peeps to try to jump on the bandwagon, in a hope that they’ll one day make a name for themselves.

When popularity and fame are up for grabs, who wouldn’t want to present the best version of themselves to the universe? To pursue those images, some go to great lengths to look sharp, sound smart and do cool things. So much so, have we forgotten hey we’re only humans and we have flaws?

There’s a mundane side of life in which we live rarely gets reported. Maybe it’s not flashy or glamorous enough. But is it about time to strike a balance before our curated pictures strike a likable chord with our followers? The thing is we stuff up, we make boo boos, we make mistakes, we slip up, we take a wrong turn, we screw up, we fuck up, we relapse… All these describe one thing – humans make errors, lots! It’s normal. It’s only abnormal when we think it’s not normal to show it.

Want to try it out? What’ll happen if people go and reveal their imperfect self to audience or readers out there? You know, those things that have been airbrushed or kept under the carpet? Shortcomings, vulnerability, weaknesses and things that didn’t go according to plan or something that you tried and failed a couple of times!

Once the “secret” is out, everyone kind of knows. So what’s next? You aren’t seen as someone as perfectly portrayed before. Is it going to be the end of the world? Not quite!

In my case, you have no idea how many times after each posting, I thought: What have I done? What on earth?! Why did I want to tell everyone about that for? I felt silly expressing myself so openly but part of me still went along regardless. Over time, I could feel my skin is getting thicker and thicker. At least, I’ve been true to myself and to my word. The bottom line is simple: My wish is to inspire and to make a difference through “true” story telling.

Then just the other day I was at home watching a documentary film about an organic farmer and his field. Asked why he’s doing it the hard/organic way instead of the conventional/artificial way, he responded: Everyone needs to be a fool at least once in their life time. It’s stuck with me since! I could really understand a profound meaning behind that… Can you?

Posted on

Is Enough Good Enough?

More more more, big big big. The more the better, the bigger the better. Don’t mind if some say the more you have, the more you have to maintain. Just give me more!

When do you know it’s enough? For me, I didn’t know when till I got my hands and feet dirty.

On this overcast Sunday, we came to this beautiful affluent beach suburb for a walk. Like before I was amazed by many large luxurious houses along the way. Looking at the sizes, I couldn’t help but wondered: Gee! How did they make it? Of course my amazement wasn’t unfounded or baseless. I’ve been paying my home loan for years, I know how hard it is to make ends meet.

Well, perhaps there’s nothing to envy. Didn’t they say: a big house, a big mortgage? But surely it doesn’t apply to everyone. I’m so intrigued. What do they do for living? Are they all doctors? accountants? lawyers or some CEOs of major players in town? Or are they a bunch of lucky people?

The funny thing is, even on a bright sunny day, I noticed most of those big houses had their blinds or curtains completely shut. What’s the point? Juts blocking the sunlight from the windows? Or something deeper is going on? Is it a case of the more you have, the more you feel insecure and the more you’re afraid to lose it?

Of course, we didn’t come here to watch people’s houses. The nearby by bush reserve is what we were after.

The weather changed quite rapidly from a cloudy morning to a rainy afternoon in a matter a few hours. When we were done with our walk, I was wet, full of dirt, sand and mud, so was my dog James. OK I admit I tempted fate but hey no regrets!

Looking at myself in that state, I didn’t really care about living in a big house with huge yards, a large garage, two grand bathrooms, a giant swimming pool etc. I was just happy to be back in my own doggy place, bathed my dog and had a comfy hot shower myself. Best of all, I finished the day with great comfort of knowing my little humble home is good enough (and big enough) for me…

Posted on

Money Has Two Faces

Money has two faces. So do people who want it badly.

Let’s set the record straight. Money isn’t a dirty word. Who doesn’t like money? If you don’t, my next question is: What’s wrong with you?

Money is only dirty if we “make” it dirty.

Look around, people are more exposed than ever. If we don’t watch our back, we can easily become a soft target for scammers out there.

Where do those scammers come from? They can be someone who sends you an unsolicited SMS message or email, a stranger who calls you up for personal/company financial information or simply a random person on a street stopping you for cash. As their tactics are getting more and more sophisticated, it’s hard to pin down exactly their true motives. But a good rule of thumb is, anything that requires you to open your wallet, think twice!

Among all suspicious people I’ve come across and dealt with, I must say below is one of the standouts.

When I was walking on my way back to the office today 4 years ago, then coming from an opposite direction, this stranger, speaking with a foreign accent and wearing an ethnic-looking costume stopped me right in a middle of the street. He quickly pointed his finger at me and to my forehead and said “Good luck will come to you next month”.

I was a bit stunned by his action, thinking what the hell… I forced a smile but remained very cautious. Not letting me go, he carried himself like a sales person. I could tell he must’ve done this many times. Quite oddly, he claimed himself a holy man and a fortune teller. “Show me your palm” he said, I did but kept a safe distance and ensured no hand touching. In a matter of few seconds he wrote something down in a tiny piece of paper, squashed it and made it into a pea sized ball then passed it on to me. “Hold it but don’t open it” he insisted. I found myself becoming more intrigued and my curiosity taking over my initial resistance.

In the midst of confusion, he asked me 2 questions: what my favourite colour is and what my favourite number is. Feeling somewhat skeptical, I kept the answers to myself while holding this small squashed paper in my hand. “Now blow it and open it” he said. I thought this is getting a bit bizarre… Don’t know why but I did what I was told. Then I saw the right answers in front of my face. Admittedly, I was impressed but not overly so.

He went on to analyse my life saying that I have a smiley face outside, but inside I’m an unhappy man. I work hard but feel under-appreciated, I have two bad habits that I need to break (note: this is the most part I was interested in) and a love of my life will come to me next month etc. Lastly, the highlight: he opened his little note book, looked me in the eye and said in a firm voice tone “Now put your money there!”. Surprised and not surprised, I told him I don’t have any money with me. “I don’t believe you” he responded as if his mask had just dropped. I repeated ” I don’t have money” then quickly ran away…

Looking back, it’s kind of laughable now. Well, he got those 2 easy questions right but not the money part. Want my money? Out of the question!

To me, some of his words still lingered but I wasn’t taking it too seriously. Believe or not, there were 2 scammers in that week. Enough…

Posted on

Put Up Or Shut Up?

I’m a man of contradictions. Sometimes I can even hold it against myself. Sounds weird huh?

I don’t like any types of confrontation. So uncomfortable that I’d avoid it if I could. However, when a situation warrants it and requires me to act or speak out, I don’t hesitate. I guess this is one of contradictions that I can call upon myself all the time.

This unparalleled courage often just comes through effortlessly. I don’t need to summon it up or make an extra effort to bring it all out. What drives me is my intuition, a natural instinct. I wish I could switch it off just like that. But too bad! I was born with it. I won the genetic lottery. I hit the jackpot. It’s in my DNA. But I came out the womb this way for a reason.

Years ago Dad told me that an unwillingness to disguise my feelings is a major downfall and will seriously hinder my chances of success in life. In retrospect, maybe he got a point. But back then I thought he was too old school, so I never listened to him or bought into his theory, purely out of stubbornness. Admittedly, it was my ego speaking most of time. Now older and wiser, I’m supposed to be that all rounder person right? Haha, far cry from it. I wonder if I’ll ever grow up one day.

I’m still that person who wears his heart on his sleeve. Perhaps it’s not always a smart thing to do – let your feelings show. All emotional intelligence experts would possibly agree and tell you the ability to manage your emotions is your ticket to many good things in life, like gaining a job promotion or building an intimate relationship. I’m convinced!

In politics, they often say: just put up or shut up. For me, I say: stand up! The ability to get back up again after a fall or speak your mind and have your voice heard or write about your journey and share it with the world audience would really be what I call a success in life, in my book that is…

Posted on

Nothing Usual About Business As Usual

Lately I’ve heard the phrase business as usual a lot. Is it trending right now?

Think uncertainty. It’s become the norm for many of us. In a business sense, the job we have today can be gone tomorrow, in a flash. We’ve seen time and time again people lose their jobs at a short notice or a shop on your street close down without a warning. While some may have that “not in my back yard” mentality, none of us is immune to change. We’re all in the same boat.

What’s around the corner? We may never know beforehand. What hasn’t changed is change itself. Many say expect the unexpected. Nice try! Psychologically, it gives us some “normality” to look forward to. At least we can still expect something – even though it’s unpredictability we’re talking about. Who’s got that crystal ball? Give it to me!

If someone says to you: Business as usual. Before you hurry to buy into it, wait a second and ask yourself: Is it what it seems to be or have they got something to hide? I guess it depends on the context but if it’s something that may affect you, you have a good reason to doubt their word.

The message is: You shouldn’t be worried, but you should be wary.

Just a couple of weeks ago, my company held a 3-day conference in Sydney. Fun fun fun. When you have everyone sitting around the table in the same room, you can be sure your word will be under scrutiny and under the watchful eye of many.

In the opening and introduction, no surprise, what took centre stage was the business outlook in the next 12 months. There were words of wisdom and words of encouragement coming out of my CEO. Overall, he was very blunt and much direct to the point about our situation, foreseeable.

What situation? The talk of merger had been going on for a while. Finally, we were given a green light by ACCC (Australian Competition and Consumer Commission) right on the open day of our conference. The timing couldn’t have been more suitable.

No sugar-coating that kind of stuff we wanted from our CEO, just facts we were interested in. No disappointments. He delivered just that. One thing that’s stuck in my head since and left me with something to chew on was – Beware, uncertainty ahead. Speaking of uncertainty, coincidentally, the night before I went publishing a post on my blog entitled Next Stop, The Unknown (https://tsaited.com/2019/08/22/next-stop-the-unknown/). Could I have seen the sign already? Go check it out if you’ve got 3 to 5 minutes.

To be told business as usual is just cold comfort. It’s a quick tactic to buy time and perhaps some stability in the current climate. People don’t need to hear happy talk or sweet talk, they prefer facts. Truth will out. If there’ll be challenges coming their way, be honest, tell them so. People would appreciate it more. The last thing they want to deal with is anything that may later turn out as a big surprise. No one likes to be misled.

Ironically, there’s nothing usual about business as usual. It’s a dog eat dog world. In any competition, there’ll be winners and losers. Our best bet is to increase our chances for success. Even though we have little control over the future, we love clinging to the outcome that’s human nature. The undeniable yet uncomfortable truth is only time will tell, not a fortunate teller. No need to be overly optimistic or pessimistic about the unknown. As pointed out by the guest speaker who came to talk to us about resilience on the last day of the conference, it doesn’t matter whether you’re a glass half full person or half empty person, the more important thing is make sure the glass is refillable…

Posted on

Live In The Moment Without Distractions

We capture various moments in life through lenses, then curate and edit them to look beautiful and flawless. Bingo! The job is done. A final version is ready. We can’t wait to showcase it to the world.

While we focus on documenting our latest movements in every step of the way, have we forgotten to live it instead? Now distractions are just about everywhere. People affected by it are on the rise. Many experts have said that social media is often to blame. But if we’re honest with ourselves, that’s just a scapegoat, it’s us made it that way.

When was the last time you ever sat down and had a proper meal without bowing to any other stimuli? Can you remember? Or does it feel like a distant memory already?

A couple of days ago I had a business lunch with a group of four associates in a nearby 5-star hotel. It was organised a month beforehand by the hotel’s Director of Sales and Marketing to show appreciation for my on-going support. Being invited to an event like this, I was very much looking forward to it.

We met up in the lobby first, then were taken to one of the reserved tables in the restaurant upstairs. When we got there, they kindly offered me to sit at the head of the table. I gratefully accepted it.

The waiter who came to serve us was gentle and polite. He pulled my chair out and let me sit comfortably. From that moment on, I felt like I was treated like a VIP. You don’t call it a 5 star hotel for nothing.

After we all sat down, I put my phone down on one side of the table roughly one elbow away from my eyesight. I think I was the only guy who had the phone in sight. All others had their phones tucked away somewhere.

At all times we were totally engaged in the conversation. None of us were distracted by other things around us except when the bright sunlight was streaming through the windows, hurting one of the guests’ eyes, only then we had to stop and ask the waiter to adjust the blinds to bring them down. Other than that, we were 100% present in our interaction.

Later when the waiter brought me the entrée and the main course I’d ordered, I was so impressed with the presentation. They looked too good to eat! No, wasn’t me. I’m not one of those Facebook users who’d be quick to reach for their phone and take a few photos. None of us was tempted. We just left our phones alone and carried on our talks and simply enjoyed the food. Must say it tasted very delicious. Just what I needed.

It was amazing how nearly 2 hours of lunch went by just like that. As they say, time flies when you’re having fun. Needless to say, I loved every minute of it, didn’t want it to stop. But hey some of us had to go back to work…

Posted on

Who Do You Think You Are?

There’s only one race, it’s called human race.

I still remember this powerful line from a community ad in Australia. It came right at the time when a newly elected parliament member was out to get some publicity. In her maiden speech, it was nothing but provoking an anti immigration sentiment, xenophobia and fears of foreign invasions. No surprise, one particular racial group – Asian was targeted. Yes, the media loved her and gave a plenty of coverage about her whereabouts. We saw the nation split between for and against groups but overall those who held an extreme view were never a majority.

True, Australia has long been known as a racist country due to its history of White Australia Policy. But that’s a thing of the past. Which country in the world doesn’t go on a day without carrying a dark past? Australia has moved on all because it did something to heal the past – including having anti discrimination act made into law and saying sorry to the stolen generations. Without these brave moves, the old wounds would’ve remained wide open and got passed down to the next generation and after.

Weeks ago a friend and I had a heated yet healthy debate over the issue of identity. Who am I? Not the stereotype most people think I am racially, ethnically or culturally. The thing is I don’t put myself into a particular basket or a specific category then act accordingly. I see myself as a global citizen. That’s all. I’m not a guy who lets other things like my backgrounds such as where I was born or where I grew up define my identity.

Who Do You Think You Are?

The Aussie series of “Who do you think you are?” were first aired 4 years ago on channel SBS. After watching a few episodes, it left me with a big question mark. I couldn’t help but wondered: Where did my ancestors come from?

So curious that I called my mum one night to find out more. We had a heartfelt conversation about my past, her generation and my grandparents’. Together I got some questions answered. It was nice to bring those things to light. Now I have a better understanding of my family tree and what’s in my blood. Again, my heritage is something I’m proud of but it’s not something that defines me.

Interestingly, a simple quest for my ancestors that night also got my dad talking about his past. From memories, never once had I seen my dad talking to his father (my grandfather). I don’t know what had happened between them two. Somehow, finding my roots also served as a long-awaited process for healing the past…