Here are my monthly financials for June 2022.
It is good to keep track and review your monthly financials so you can be in control of your finances.
Having a fixed income and knowing my expenses will not exceed my budget allowed me to not track my expenses before I left my job. I did not feel a need to track my finances strictly as I know I can control my spending. I only tracked my investments diligently.
Since I will not have a fixed source of income soon, I decided to start tracking my financials starting from January 2021. Money will be tight so I need to be extra prudent. This also helps generate content for my website.
Top 3 Income Sources
Interest – S$141.71
This is made up of the coupon payments from Singapore Savings Bond and interest from Singlife and Dash PET.
Singlife and Dash PET have not increased their rates even though the interest rates have been rising. The contribution of Singlife and Dash PET will start dropping as I start converting them into SSBs.
Dividends – S$263.12
These are dividends from Tuan Sing and AIMS.
Allowance – S$176.13
This is the allowance received for NS FIT.
Top 3 Expense Sources
Investment – S$200
S$200 of it is my monthly DCA into STI ETF using POSB Invest-saver.
Groceries – S$62.06
This is for groceries. I finally managed to get enough points (6,000) on Dash PET and redeemed a S$10 voucher for Sheng Siong.
Food – S$40.40
This is for food.
CLL’s Infrequently Curated Videos
These Kids Are Skipping College to Be TikTok Famous
This shows some insight into the influencer sphere, specifically TikTok. These influencers are already viral and they are invited into a creator house. The creator house is essentially a “factory” to create content constantly. They make money from endorsements and promoting music by using the music as the background or even as part of their content. This career might or might not be a passing fad. If they are able to use their money wisely (investing and saving), they might be set for life. However, remember for every 1 successful individual, there are plenty who don’t make it. The market is also extremely saturated so it can be harder and harder to succeed in this career.
Delivery Apps Screw Over Everyone
Delivery apps provides so much convenience however, at what cost? All the promotions given by the delivery apps are not sustainable and are given to capture market share and build habits. The only people who win in this scenario is the employees of these companies, especially management. Jobs are created for the delivery drivers but their skills might not be transferable, in addition, they don’t have job security as they are treated as contractors and not employees. Businesses on these platforms need to pay a high commission to the company. Customers have to slowly pay more and more to get their deliveries. Investor’s money is used to subsidize the deliveries as this business model is not sustainable without VC funds as the cost of delivery is still too expensive without subsidy. We will see whether this industry will still exist in the coming years when the funds dry up.
The CULT of Hydro Flask
This is an example of marketing success. They might not have the best bottles or even be the most sustainable bottle out there, however, they are the most successful one. Even if they don’t have the best bottles, they are still of good quality.
They make a play in the rising consumer need for sustainable products. The bottle is also designed to create marketing opportunities. For example, the bottles are too big to be slotted into bags so it has to be held in the hand. They are all plain, allowing consumers to customize their own bottles using stickers. Owning and SHOWING off your bottle is a statement to the world that you are not only stylish, but you are also saving the world (by being eco-friendly). People want to be a part of a movement, and owning a bottle is an easy way to do that.
Paul Hollywood eats a £350 Strawberry!
A strawberry on this Japanese farm costs almost S$600. The host was extremely sceptical but after he tried it, his expression is everything. For most of us, it is ridiculous to even fathom eating one of these, but the fact is there are many rich people in this world that can afford such luxuries. Would you ever purchase such an expensive fruit? What if you are a billionaire? Does your financial status affect your purchase decisions? Comment and let me know.
Asia’s Tinder Swindlers: Exposing Love Scam Rings In Cambodia
Scammers are a bane to society. They provide ZERO value and are siphoning money away from honest people. People are getting lonelier so when someone approaches them showing attention and concern, they get hooked immediately. The scammers are skilled in manipulation and they know what can make one tick. Also, they operate in teams so you are actually speaking to an entire group, instead of just speaking to your fake lover.
This documentary also shows a different side to the story where the low-level scammers are also scammed to work for these organizations. If you are looking for a job or a lover, don’t easily trust the other party and do your homework. Talk to your family, friends or just a public forum to ask for comments on your situation even before you make any decision. Sometimes you don’t even need an answer, once you type out your question, you will realize how ridiculous how the situation is and step out of the scam.
The Immoral Design of Diablo Immortal
The classic Diablo game has a new instalment and it has drawn ire from gamers everywhere. It has weaponized micro transactions, milking the player almost every step of the way. In addition, they work around loopholes to get around the loot box law. For example, they make you clear a dungeon before getting a random drop instead of the normal Gacha where you get pull for an item or a character. By doing this, they are skirting the laws on loot boxes.
Games, like all businesses, have to make money and no one is denying that. However, how much is too much? The content creator shows how immoral the franchise is and is hoping people see it and get them to stop supporting the game. He admits that it is a great game, however, progress is gated by multiple micro transactions, making it extremely costly there extremely disgusting and manipulative. If this company gets away with this, it might encourage other game studios to follow in their footsteps.
Celsius is Collapsing… Here’s Why
High yield in crypto is “normal” but not “normal”. These yields are not sustainable, especially in a bear market. If you are attracted to these high yields, think twice before placing your funds with these platforms. Everything goes on smoothly until it doesn’t. It is also disgusting that they are using the message that “banks are not your friends” to push their own product, which provides high yields for crypto assets. His argument is that banks are using your money and giving back only a measly yield while his platform can give yields of up to 9-10%.
Guess what, now they are restricting withdrawals and people who were attracted to these high yields have their money stuck. It is time to revisit your coins if you have any and get them out if the company is promising unsustainable extremely high yields. The yield must come from somewhere and it is definitely not risk-free. When shit hits the fan, you not only lose your yield but potentially your base too.
Money Manager App
I am using an app called Money Manager to track my income and expenses. It is a free tool available on mobile available on Google Play Store and Apple App Store.
As far as I know, the data collected from the app is for tracking the ads you view and interact with on the app.
Please check out their privacy policy on what information they collect and what is it used for.
Personally, the value this app brings to me outweighs the value of the information I provide to them.
